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June 14, 2011 Refer a Colleague
In This Issue:

Latest from Kareo

Strategies for Successful Denial Follow-up in Medical Billing

By Sara M. Larch, MSHA, FACMPE

Denied small

In early May, Elizabeth Woodcock presented a Kareo webinar on “Denial Management: Strategies to Improve Cash Flow in Medical Billing.” She presented excellent information on denial prevention and denial management and included a sample appeal letter. Now, let’s spend some time looking at strategies to improve the success of your denial follow up processes... Read More

Complimentary Webinar:
Preparing for ICD-10-CM--The Nitty-Gritty of Diagnosis Coding

Thursday, June 16, 2011
1:00 PM EDT/10:00 AM PDT

Speaker: Nancy Maguire, ACS, PCS, HCS-D

Maguire June Webinar ICD-10 small  

You've been hearing about the switch to ICD-10, but you'd like to know more about the diagnosis coding and how to plan training for your staff to make sure the conversion goes smoothly. Find out what you need to know in this practical webinar.

Nancy Maguire, ACS, PCS, HCS-D, author of the Nancy Maguire GPS to ICD-10-CM Planning and Implementation Guide and leading expert on ICD-10, will walk you through the nitty-gritty of diagnosis coding with ICD-10 and how to make a smooth transition for your practice.

You'll Gain Insights on:

    • What are the differences between ICD-9 and ICD-10?
    • What is the new structure of coding with ICD-10?
    • How should you plan training for your staff?
    • What are the five steps your practice should take now?
    • And much more

Register Now!

Benchmarks for Your Medical Practice: A Vital Part of Critical Practice Analysis

By Bhagwan Satiani, MD, MBA, FACS, FACHE

Even with great effort, none of the commonly utilized financial tools necessary for critical practice analysis, including charges or cost per relative value unit (RVU) or work RVU (wRVU), revenue per RVU, break-even fees, practice expense RVU (peRVU) and profitability, may be in line with national benchmarks. There is always room to improve. Here are the most common indicators of value to any practice that need to be monitored and compared to benchmarks... Read More

Best Practices:
12 Steps to Avoid Embezzlement in Your Medical Practice

By Judy Capko

Medical practice embezzlement war stories confirm the existence of clever thieves that steal from the medical practice they work for. It is devastating at both an emotional and financial level to discover a trusted employee has betrayed you. Here are some tips on how to protect your practice from an embezzlement scheme... Read More

ICD-10 Training Camp:
Where Do You Begin with ICD-10 Preparation?

By Nancy Maguire, ACS, PCS, FCS, HCS-D, CRT

The decisions on a course of action for transitioning to ICD-10 diagnosis codes must start now; not tomorrow, or the day after, but right now. If you are the individual tasked with this responsibility, you must decide how training will be scheduled, who will receive training and to what extent, and how progress will be monitored... Read More

Learn How to Streamline Your Medical Billing -
You Are Invited to a Special Demo of Kareo

Kareo Dashboard

You are invited to join us for a complimentary demo webinar on How to Streamline Your Medical Billing with Kareo medical billing software on Tuesday, June 21. We hope you will join us. During this informative webinar, you'll hear about a special offer that will allow you to get 30 days of Kareo free of charge, plus you'll learn how Kareo can help you improve your profitability and productivity with... Read More

Case Study

“Excellent Organization and Communication are Essential. That’s What I Get with Kareo.”

“Excellent Organization and Communication are Essential. That’s What I Get with Kareo.”

Amy Burney, Prime Care Medical Services, LLC 

Amy Burney knows a thing or two about multi-tasking. In her current capacity, she serves not only as office manager but as the primary biller for four separate practices. It’s a position she couldn’t manage, she says, if she weren’t organized--and had the right resources backing her up... Read More


Case Study

“My Philosophy Is, Take Time, At the Time, to Get It Right the First Time. Kareo Makes That Easy for Billing Professionals.”

“My Philosophy Is, Take Time, At the Time, to Get It Right the First Time. Kareo Makes That Easy for Billing Professionals.”

Bob Pedersen, RLP Medical Billing

With over 22 years in the medical billing profession, Bob Pedersen knows what he doesn’t want in a software. “I was sick of our in-house billing system,” says Bob, who previously served as Vice President of another billing service in Kansas City for over 19 years. “We were spending way too much time on back-ups…” Read More


Billing Tip of the Month

Efficiently Handling Patient Balances in Kareo

Walter LeGrand, ECCOHealth, LLC

We are using Collection Category task in Kareo to track the status of patient balance more efficiently. We have set the collection categories of... Read More

Top News and Ideas from Industry

CMS to Publicly Report Provider Performance

Mary Mosquera, Government Health IT, June 03, 2011

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) intends to allow certain organizations access to Medicare claims data to produce public reports that will offer consumers and employers a more accurate snapshot of the performance of physicians and hospitals... Read More

OIG: Medicaid and Medicare Fraud Investigations May Net $3.4B

Molly Gamble, Becker’s ASC Review, June 3, 2011

The Office of Inspector General has announced $3.4 billion in new expected recoveries related to its investigations, audits and other probes, mostly related to Medicare and Medicaid, according to an OIG news release... Read More

Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Updates Include Changes to HCPCS Level II, CPT Code Descriptors

Rachel Fields, Becker’s ASC Review, June 2, 2011

Updated payment files for the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule were released to contractors on May 20 and include several changes to HCPCS Level II and CPT code descriptors and payment indicators, according to an AAPC release... Read More

Compliance Newsletter Clarifies Recent RAC Findings

AAPC News, June 10, 2011

A variety of payment issues that affect inpatient rehabilitation facilities, physicians, non-physician practitioners (NPPs), radiology suppliers, and inpatient and outpatient hospitals are covered in the April edition of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) freely distributed Medicare Quarterly Provider Compliance Newsletter. Billing staff should be on the lookout for… Read More

Helpful Hints for Crosswalking ICD-9/ICD-10 Codes

AAPC News, June 10, 2011

“What You Should Know About the GEMs,” an article published in the May 24 issue of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) Daily Digest Bulletin, explains how to use the GEMs provided by the agency. GEMs are tools that act mainly as a crosswalk between ICD-9 and ICD-10 diagnosis codes, allowing you to look up an ICD-9 code and be provided with the most appropriate ICD-10 matches and vice versa… Read More

Common Coding Myths May Put Profits and Practices at Risk

Mary Service, Diabetes Options, May 2011

Correct coding has significant consequences for physician billing and practice. There are a number of coding myths, however, that can jeopardize practices and reduce the amount of revenue for which they can bill. Given the zeal shown by federal agencies and health insurance companies to recover improperly paid bills, it is essential that medical professionals are careful and correct in their coding practices… Read More

Greening Your Technology: A High-Tech Way to Save the Planet

Pamela Lewis Dolan, Amednews, June 6, 2011

Physicians can reduce their practices' carbon footprint -- and their expenses -- when they buy the right technology and use it in an eco-friendly way. This includes reducing wasted energy by adopting certain habits with technology use… Read More

Assembling a Robust Revenue Cycle Team: How to Hire and Retain Great Billers, Coders and Collectors

Leigh Page, Becker’s ASC Review, May 27, 2011

Although focused on ASCs, this article offers 14 tips for assembling the best revenue cycle team that apply to most practices, including 1) Hire an adequate number of staff, 2) Pay revenue staff well, 3) Make sure they are IT-savvy, 4) Allow coders to specialize, and more... Read More

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