Five priorities are identified in the mission of CMS Office of Minority Health, “Working to Achieve Health Equity.” The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has five key priority areas that are expected to drive how the agency will, within a span of 10 years, accomplish its stated goal to achieve health equity. Priority […]
Total expenses for hospitals and physician practices were up 7 percent compared to June 2021. Hospitals, health systems, and physician practices saw rising revenues and patient volumes in June 2022, but it was not enough to offset the continuously high expenses, leading to negative margins for the sixth consecutive month, according to data from Kaufman […]
A survey shows that 60% of consumers who look for pricing information seek answers from their insurance companies, but healthcare price transparency should still be a priority for providers. Not many consumers are asking how much healthcare services cost but among those who do, they are seeking answers primarily from their insurance companies, according to […]
Observation, outpatient outlier payments, and the Inpatient-only List: Getting it right is not always easy. On this week’s Monitor Mondays we had a robust discussion about Condition Code 44. And on June 9, I will be presenting a webinar on the nebulous concept of “outpatient” service in a bed. Both of these have one thing […]
Providers today are stuck using outdated templates, leaving ample room for improvement. Let’s take a retrospective look at evaluation and management (E&M) services—examining what we had, what we have now, and what lies ahead. Before the implementation of the 2021 documentation guideline (DG) changes, many providers relied on templates built around outdated office-based documentation requirements […]
Diverse medical software — EHRs, billing software, patient relations tools — has already become essential for the efficient operation of any healthcare provider, be it a cross-state healthcare network or a small private practice. Though providers can probably make use of any type of medical software, the financial resources they can invest in medical solutions […]
Q: The providers in our clinic want to start billing e-visits.Can they bill for all the communication between the provider and patient through our online portal? A: As you venture into billing e-visits, on-line visits, digital visits – however you’d like to refer to them – let’s review the required elements for these types of […]
Healthcare spending could drop by more than $11.4 billion next year if enhanced premium tax credits enacted in the American Rescue Plan expire, new research finds. Hospital spending would decline by $3.8 billion, while spending on physician practice services would drop by $1.3 billion, according to a report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and […]
Limit this code to administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. On May 17, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amended the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to authorize the use of a booster dose for patients 5 through 11 years of age. The CPT® code to report administration of this […]
The health care industry is rapidly evolving. COVID-19 has uncovered a litany of flaws in health care systems, leading to massive changes in the way patients, providers, and payers communicate and operate. One of the highest impact changes in the industry is the widespread shift from a traditional fee-for-service reimbursement system to value-based care. Instead […]