Physicians Face Medicare Cliff

Mary Ann Porucznik; Matthew Twetten

On July 1, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued two proposed rules for 2012 payments under Medicare. The first covered payment policies and rates for physicians and nonphysician practitioners (NPPs) for services paid under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) in calendar year (CY) 2012; the second covered the 2012 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS).

Is professional courtesy worth saving?

Thomas J. Grogan, MD

The last patient of the day is the son of a local pediatrician. The boy fell off his snow board and sustained a wrist fracture. You cast the fracture, check the postreduction films, and tell his mom that you want to see the boy in a week to check the alignment with another X-ray. As you fill out the charge ticket, you tell the receptionist, “No charge for today.” Easy, right? Think again.

Commonly asked hand coding questions

Mary LeGrand, RN, MA, CCS-P, CPC

Previous question-and-answer columns have addressed commonly asked questions about joint injections, foot and ankle services, and other issues. This issue focuses on questions about hand coding. Collagenase injections Q. How should we report services for initial and subsequent collagenase injections? A. The answer depends on whether your Medicare carrier or private payer has a specific policy related to this procedure. Check their websites for medical policies or coding instructions.

Navigating a changing healthcare environment

John Cherf, MD, MPH, MBA

Expect transformational change and financial compression On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law one of the most comprehensive healthcare reform bills ever enacted, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This legislation was followed by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (signed into law on March 30, 2010).

Don’t let your EMR system put you at risk

D. Kay Kirkpatrick, MD

Most medical practices are making the transition from paper to electronic records. Although electronic medical record (EMR) systems have many benefits, in some ways an EMR may actually increase the practice’s liability risk. Privacy, security, documentation, medication prescribing, and tracking test results are all potential problem areas. The following tips may help reduce these risks.

Manage risk by managing patient expectations

Susan Keane Baker

By Susan Keane Baker Creating reasonable expectations results in trust and confidence Managing expectations is a process of helping patients know how to be right and when to be satisfied. Managing expectations is creating structure and process with the outcome of patient trust and confidence in you and your team. Patients expect two types of value from their physicians: rational value and emotional value.

The law and the “disruptive physician”

By: Michael J. Schoppmann, Esq. The American Medical Association (AMA), through its Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs, supports the designation of “disruptive physician” as a potential disciplinary mechanism. It has defined two distinct forms of physician behaviors (inappropriate and disruptive) upon which such actions can be based.

Pearls from an arthroplasty pro

Richard D. Scott, MD

Lessons learned during 35 years of arthroplasty surgery Throughout our medical careers, each of us learns lessons about patient care and adopts techniques that are routinely used during patient encounters. The following techniques have been helpful to me, and I hope they will be useful to others as well.