New Medicare Cards: What Do the New Medicare Cards Mean for Providers and Patients

In an effort to protect Medicare beneficiaries, the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015 require the removal of your Social Security Number (SSN) from current Medicare cards and replace it with the Medical Beneficiary Identifier (MBI). All Medicare beneficiaries will be required to switch to the new […]

Is Medical Billing Outsourcing Right for You?

The choice to outsource the medical billing for your practice can be a difficult decision. There are a variety of reasons for choosing to keep your medical billing in-house or to outsource your medical billing. The decision can be emotional and usually differs from practice to practice. Practice size, how […]

How to Reduce No-Shows

According to an MGMA survey of practices that track no-shows and late cancellations, these practices used the following patient appointment reminder techniques to reduce the number of no-shows:

• 75.7% have staff make telephone calls
• 19.3% send postcards/mailers
• 18.8% have an automated attendant system make calls
• 5.9% have a vendor handle reminders and confirmation

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Automated Appointment Reminder (AAR)

AAR is a computer application that can be accessed online as SaaS (Software as a Service) or installed onsite. The application is used by medical practices of all sizes to automatically call their scheduled patients in advance and remind them of their upcoming appointments. These applications are getting very sophisticated in the features they provide. They can actually emulate a medical office receptionist in calling and reminding patients. They can detect if the call is answered by an individual, voicemail or answering machine and convey the right message. They can also accept responses from patients for cancelling or rescheduling their upcoming appointments. {….}

Are You Ready For ICD-10-CM?

What is ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS? ICD-10-CM is the new US clinical modification standard of the International Classification of Disease ICD-10. It will replace the current ICD-9-CM by October 1, 2013. ICD-10-CM is maintained by NCHS (National Center for Health Statistics). It includes the level of detail needed for disease classification and diagnostic specification in the United States. It consists of more than 68,000 diagnosis codes while ICD-9-CM has a little more than 13,000 diagnosis codes. {….}

Are You Prepared for the Red Flags Rule?

Red Flags Rule is instituted by the FTC and it is designed to protect against identity theft. The rule will take effect on November 1, 2009. It sets out how physicians’ offices, clinics and hospitals assess and identify medical identity theft. This occurs when a person uses another person’s personal information (Name, Social Security Number or insurance information) without the victim’s consent to obtain medical services. As defined by the FTC, “Red Flags” are suspicious patterns or practices that indicate the possibility of identity theft. {….}