Archive for the Week of February 24, 2006
Archive for the Week of February 24, 2006
Welcome to the medical billing blog archive for the week of February 24, 2006.
Here you will find links to every article added to the Outsource Management Group web site during the week of February 24, 2006.
You can browse this week's archives by clicking the "More" button from any of the excerpts below.
Specialty Hospitals Hinder Community Hospitals’ Medical Billing
Specialty Hospitals Hinder Community Hospitals’ Medical Billing You may not think that one hospital could affect another hospital’s medical billing, but you would be wrong. Community hospitals used to be the only hospitals around. Now specialty hospitals are popping up all over the country. These new specialty hospitals are beginning to hinder medical billing reimbursement for community hospitals. There are several issues of debate when speaking of specialty hospitals. Routinely these hospitals get the more profitable medical cases than the community hospitals. This causes problems for the community hospitals because they use these high profit cases to subsidize their lower profit cases. Not only do specialty hospitals take money away …
RAD Medical Billing Categories Will Change
RAD Medical Billing Categories Will Change Two new durable medical equipment codes will receive medical billing caps . Therapy services and durable medical equipment services have gone through many changes over the last year. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services have recently changed the category of two medical billing device codes: E0471 and E0472. The medical billing codes E0471 and E0472 are RAD codes. These codes used to be placed in the durable medical equipment category that was for items frequently used. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services announced that this change will take effect on April 01, 2006. The main reason CMS changed the category was because …
Can You Choose the Correct Medical Billing Pain Code?
Can You Choose the Correct Medical Billing Pain Code? Finding the right pain code can be a sticky situation in medical billing. When dental issues come into the picture, sometimes the medical billing staff members go crazy. Knowing how to simply break down a chief complaint in any situation is a medical billing skill everyone should master. If a patient comes into the emergency department and complains of a dental wire sticking into his/her lip, you already have your chief complaint. Even if your physician does not treat the patient but merely advises him/her to check with the dentist and buy someone wax from the local drugstore, you can still …
Wireless Charge Capture Improves Medical Billing
Wireless Charge Capture Improves Medical Billing New mobile technology is rocking the medical billing world. A new mobile application system called PatientKeeper Charge Capture is making the world a little easier for the Hebrew Rehabilitation center. This new system has quickly exceeded the hospital’s expectations, mobile devices are quickly becoming the wave of the future in medical building. There are many advances in technology that do little to affect the medical billing world. Mobile technology is different. The Hebrew rehabilitation center recently introduced new mobile technology to its hospital called the PatientKeeper Charge Capture. This new system has improved medical billing in many ways. One of the main benefits of …
Kaiser Begins Medical Billing Marketing
Kaiser Begins Medical Billing Marketing Kaiser is beginning to make its disease management medical billing available for self insured businesses. Many plans contract disease management from outside sources. Kaiser Permanente is different. This company has decided to keep its disease management services in-house. Kaiser Permanente is quickly becoming a medical billing force in America. Kaiser Permanente Healthy Solutions is the disease management subsidiary of Kaiser Permanente . Beginning soon, this medical billing giant will begin to market to national employers, groups, labor unions, and the national government. They believe their disease management services could improve medical billing for all groups. Kaiser anticipates signing on about five to eight new customers …
Medical Billing Data Theft
Medical Billing Data Theft The Portland Oregon has suffered a severe medical billing data breach. Providence Home Services, a home health agency, recently had their patient records stolen. This medical billing information breach severely compromises the privacy and confidentiality of its patients. Now Providence Home Services may be in trouble for a lack of medical billing security. 365,000 medical billing records were compromised on December 31, 2005. Records that dated back to 1987 were stolen. These included names, dates of birth, addresses, diseases , etc. The medical billing records were stolen from an employee’s car. Apparently, the agency appoints a different employee to cart computer files home every day. This …
History of Medical Billing Therapy Caps
History of Medical Billing Therapy Caps The issue of therapy caps is not a new topic in medical billing. The on again, off again nature of therapy caps has left medical billing staff members spinning. To fully understand the reasons for these limits, it is important to understand the history. Looking back into the history of therapy cap medical billing can give us a glimpse into the future. Perhaps the first introduction of therapy caps was in 1997. This is when Medicare implemented outpatient therapy caps in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. However, like any other medical billing policy, there are always exceptions. Certain providers and beneficiaries were protected …
New Medical Billing Updates
New Medical Billing Updates New medical billing changes grace the therapy scene once again. Medicare part A services for therapy were recently implemented on February 06, 2006. The associated hospital services (AHS) released guideline explanations to help Providers understand the new therapy changes. The AHS is a Hospice and Home Health Intermediary for Medicare. If your practice handles therapy issues, pay attention to these medical billing changes. In therapy medical billing there are modifiers (GP, GO, and GN), revenue codes (42X, 43X, and 44X), and wound care service CPT codes (97602, 97605, 97606, 97597, and 97598). Of the modifiers and codes listed , providers of the outpatient perspective payment system …
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take II
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take II There are several layers of critical care medical billing myths. Previously discussed were two myths . Now an additional three misconceptions will be brought to the forefront. Maximizing your revenue means to fully understand critical care medical billing. One common myth for critical care medical billing is that the time spent with the patient must be continuous. In reality, the physician’s time can be split up in several different chunks. For example, the doctor can visit a patient at his/her bedside for 25 minutes and later view in x-ray of that patient for ten minutes. This would count as 35 minutes for that …
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take I
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take I Critical care medical billing codes have been accused of reimbursing meager amounts of money. In fact, critical care codes can bring you a lot of money. The medical billing codes 99291-99292 can only bring proper reimbursement if you steer clear of the common pitfalls. Perhaps the most common medical billing myths in critical care is that each visit must meet every element of an evaluation and management exam. Many times this is difficult during critical visits. In reality, medical billing codes for critical care are timed based. For example, the medical billing CPT code 99291 (Critical care, evaluation and management of the critically …
