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May 10, 2011

Latest from Kareo

The Ten Biggest Coding Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

By Betsy Nicoletti, M.S., CPC

A good way to insure you're avoiding denials and getting your claims paid the first time is to make sure you're not making one of the ten biggest coding mistakes. Check this list to be sure you're using best practices... Read More

You are invited to join us for a complimentary one-hour webinar:

Denial Management: Strategies to Improve Cash Flow in Medical Billing

Thursday, May 12, 2011
1:00 PM EDT/10:00 AM PDT

Speaker: Elizabeth W. Woodcock, MBA, FACMPE, CPC

Think your medical practice has a healthy revenue cycle? If you haven't focused - really focused - on insurance denials, then think again. Denials might be the most underestimated and poorly understood sources of significant cash leakage from your practice's revenue cycle.
National speaker and practice management expert Elizabeth Woodcock shows you how to dig into the causes of claim denials in your practice and drastically reduce lost revenue. She'll show you how to:

Assess denial patterns and discover their root causes
Quantify the financial impact of denials
Utilize more streamlined processes to correct and resubmit denials
File effective appeals of denials and underpayments
Develop strategies to prevent denials and improve staff productivity
And much more

Register Now

Focus on Adjustments - Where is the Money Really Going?

By Deborah Holzmark, RN, MBA, CPHQ, MCS-P, CMPE

Often practices spend time focusing on the steps leading up to getting the money in the door, and with good reason; however, sometimes we overlook what happens after the money is received. Missing out on further examination of the rest of the collection process can result in leaving a significant amount of money on the table. Once payment has been received in the practice and the amounts posted, how do you determine, monitor and follow-up on adjustments?... Read More

Best Practices

Smart-Sourcing Can Get You the Expertise You Need in Medical Billing

By Judy Capko

"Smart-sourcing" is the latest coined phrase for being smart about outsourcing some of the services you need and knowing when it makes sense. It is my belief that if you have the potential to get a higher level of expertise and pay less than the current cost for having those services in-house, outsourcing is worth pursuing. So when should you consider outsourcing? Start by... Read More

ICD-10 Training Camp

What are the Differences Between ICD-9 and ICD-10?

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

ICD-9 diagnosis codes presently consist of 3-5 numeric digits representing illnesses and conditions. This system is running out of space to expand and is over 30 years old. There are 17 chapters and approximately 14,000 codes in ICD-9-CM. In comparison, ICD-10-CM alphanumeric diagnosis codes number 68,000 in 21 chapters...Read More

Win a Free Kindle - Be Sure to "Like" Kareo on Facebook by Friday, May 13

Remember, the next monthly drawing for a free Kindle is this Friday, May 13. We'll be selecting a name from our list of friends and "likes" on Facebook, so all you have to do is "like" Kareo. It's that simple. Our first winners from March and April are already enjoying their Kindles - wouldn't you like to be next? "Like" Kareo today... Read More

Case Study

"I'm All in Favor of Going Paperless. Kareo Has Unique Features that Make Going Electronic Seamless and Efficient."

Bonnie Gothelf, Medical Biller

In 16 years as a medical biller, Bonnie Gothelf has worked with her share of billing software programs. "I've used probably half a dozen different systems," she says. When she agreed to handle the billing for Spectrum Physical Therapy & Athletic Training in New Jersey last December, she knew she would be using yet another program: Kareo... Read More

Case Study

"Generating Revenue Takes a Lot More than Just Submitting Claims. Kareo Enables Us to Provide the Entire Spectrum of Revenue Cycle Management Services for Clients."

Clark Avery, Aesyntix Health

Aesyntix Health, Inc. is a leading provider of solutions to dermatologists and plastic surgeons. "We started with billing for a single client but quickly outgrew the software we had been using," Clark recalls. He had very specific criteria for the system he needed to help grow Aesyntix. "One of the most important features was that it needed to be a SaaS - software as a service," he says. "The days of shrink-wrapped software are done, in my opinion. Kareo is basically...Read More

Billing Tip of the Month

How to Easily Do a Mass Rebill on Claims for Patients

By Melissa England, Billing Dept. Manager, Complete Balance Solutions Institute for Rehab

When you need to do a mass rebill on claims for patients in Kareo, you can go into your "Encounter" drop down and click on "Track Claim Status." Then type in the patient last name and it will open all the claims that were pending or closed for this patient. If you need to rebill a bunch of dates, instead of going into each one... Read More

Top News and Ideas from Industry

ICD-10 Costs for Practices Estimated

David Stone, Government Health IT, May 02, 2011

The Medical Group Management Association reported from a recent Nachimson Advisors Study that the average cost of moving to ICD-10 based on practice sizes were $83,000 for small practices, $285,000 for medium practices, and $2.7M for large practices. This article addresses significant issues and potential concerns and how to alleviate several operational and budgetary issues... Read More

CMS Report Highlights RAC Overpayments, Underpayments

AAPC News, April 29, 2011

Since October 2009, when Medicare's fee-for-service Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) Program went nationwide, health care providers have returned $313.2 million in alleged Medicare overpayments and received $52.6 million in Medicare underpayments, according to a new report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The report also identifies the top overpayment issues in each of the four RAC regions nationwide... Read More

Not E-Claim Compliant? Expect No Pay in 2012

Emily Berry, Amednews, April 25, 2011

On Jan. 1, 2012, if physicians' practice management systems are not up to new standards, they will risk not getting electronic payments from private insurers and Medicare. Physicians still have time to change from the HIPAA 4010 standards for electronic claims submissions to the 5010 set... Read More

Medicare Quality Bonuses Elude Nearly Half of Reporting Doctors

Charles Fiegl, Amednews, May 2, 2011

The Medicare program paid a record $234 million in quality reporting bonuses to doctors in 2009, but participation in the Physician Quality Reporting System continued to falter as a large segment of eligible professionals either failed to meet minimum requirements or did not bother with the initiative. Total payouts were up in the third year, but only one in five eligible professionals participated in the voluntary program... Read More

AHIMA's Top 10 ICD-10 Documentation Problems

Tom Sullivan, ICD-10 Watch, April 26, 2011

The new code sets promise challenges across the spectrum of uses and users, coding documentation being no exception. "Some documentation issues will require physicians to capture new information; others involve updated, modified, and otherwise expanded documentation needs," AHIMA explains... Read More

Electronic Medical Records: What Your Data Can Tell You

Pamela Lewis Dolan, Amednews, May 2, 2011

One of the perceived advantages of electronic medical records is that physicians will have a wealth of information that can help them gain greater insight about patients. Data analysis will help your practice achieve meaningful use, qualify as part of an accountable care organization, and identify at-risk patients or inefficient business practices. But even a practice that isn't participating in these programs can use analytics to get a solid, fact-based snapshot of how it is performing... Read More

Medicare's Missed Checkups: Few Seniors Get Wellness Exam

Charles Fiegl, Amednews, May 2, 2011

Policymakers hope the initial "Welcome to Medicare" visit will help physicians get new and returning beneficiaries hooked on preventive care, but most doctors aren't taking the bait. The vast majority of Medicare patients will be eligible for free wellness exams in 2011. But unless there is a remarkable turnaround, tens of millions of patients won't get one... Read More

HHS Considers Mystery Patients to Evaluate PCPs

AAPC News, April 29, 2011

The office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) is proposing to use a mystery shopper approach to collect data from physician offices to accurately gauge availability of primary care physicians (PCPs) accepting new patients, assess the timeliness of services from PCPs, and assess the reasons that PCP availability is lacking... Read More