Your Message Subject or Title

Can't view this email? View in a browser

In This Issue / September 2012

Seven Ways to Improve Your Patient Collections

By Betsy Nicoletti, M.S., CPC

Patients' higher deductibles and out of pocket costs shift the burden from insurance to patient due collections. Here are seven key steps to improve your patient collections…

Complimentary Webinar: Improving Your Bottom Line Through Patient Collections
	Tuesday, September 25, 2012 1:00 PM EDT/10:00 AM PDT Speaker: Donna Weinstock Register Now
Join expert Donna Weinstock as she explains: • Ways to ask for money when the patient is in the office • The importance of having a financial policy • The value of collecting deposits on the front end • Collecting deductibles at the time of service • And much more

Beyond Receivables: Hidden Costs of Inadequate Up-Front Patient Collections

By Laurie Morgan

If your practice hasn’t mastered collecting patient payments at the time of service and you’ve come to consider the financial impacts tolerable “for the moment,” you should consider several other negative effects...

Find Out How to Streamline Your Medical Billing in a Kareo Demo Webinar
	Learn how Kareo medical billing software will make medical billing easy for you as you improve your profitability: ● Save money — affordable monthly fee subscription that INCLUDES clearinghouse fees ● Increase collections from patients with online bill pay and e-statements. ● and much more… Read more

Top News & Ideas from Industry

Time to Leapfrog Over the Debate, Into an ICD-10 Transition Plan
Carl Natale, ICD-10 Watch, August 31, 2012 In a way, the final rule on the Oct. 1, 2014, deadline for ICD-10 compliance didn't change anything. In the spirit of moving on, here's a round up of what is being said about making ICD-10 implementation a reality... Go to Article

Doctors Can’t Challenge Medicare Audits, Appeals Court Rules
Alicia Gallegos, Amednews, September 10, 2012 Health professionals cannot challenge auditors’ decisions to review Medicare claims that are more than a year old, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled… Go to Article

Practices Concerned Over ICD-10 Switchover, Survey Says
Erin McCann, Healthcare IT News, September 5, 2012 Medical practices nationwide have expressed worry regarding the impact of an ICD-10 switchover, according to a recent survey... Go to Article

Latest Ractrac Survey Shows Soaring Denials
Kelsey Brimmer, Healthcare Finance News, September 4, 2012 According to the latest RACTrac survey, Medicare recovery auditors (RAC)-related denials in the second quarter of 2012 soared upwards by 24 percent from the first quarter of 2012... Go to Article

EHR Standards Get Tougher Under Finalized Meaningful Use Stage 2
Charles Fiegl, Amednews, September 3, 2012 Starting as early as 2014, physician practices will be required to achieve more difficult objectives to demonstrate meaningful use of electronic health records to earn federal bonuses and prevent future penalties... Go to Article

California Sues Plastic Surgeon for Aggressive Billing Tactics
Heather Linder, Becker’s ASC Review, September 5, 2012 California has filed suit against a South Pasadena plastic surgeon for her aggressive billing tactics, according to the Los Angeles Times... Go to Article

SGR Repeal Cost Estimate Drops to $245 Billion
Charles Fiegl, Amednews, August 30, 2012 Reduced projected Medicare spending for the next decade has lowered the estimated cost of repealing Medicare’s sustainable growth rate formula that helps determine physician pay... Go to Article

HIPAA Health Plan Identifier Rule Should Increase Standardization, Billing Efficiency
Heather Linder, Becker’s ASC Review, August 28, 2012 The Department of Health and Human Services announced a rule establishing a health plan identifier to increase standardization for HIPAA transactions and billing efficiency, according to GovernmentHealthIT... Go to Article

How to Bill for Screening and Treating Obesity in Adults
Victoria Stagg Elliott, Amednews, September 3, 2012 Even when patients are willing and able to enter treatment for obesity, primary care physicians have not always gotten paid for the screening and treatment... Go to Article

Selecting the Right E&M Codes at Your Medical Practice
Raemarie Jimenez, CPC, AAPC News, August 29, 2012 The focus on educating providers and coders on the selection of evaluation and management (E&M) services has increased over the years due to numerous factors, including... Go to Article