Free webinar on new Medi-Cal alcohol screening and prevention benefit Primary care physicians are invited to attend a free webinar that will cover a new Medi-Cal benefit for individuals with alcohol use disorders, as well as those who are at risk of developing these disorders. The webinar, 12 to 1 p.m. on Monday, March 24, will be presented by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) in partnership with Alcohol Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) experts from the University of California, Los Angeles and L.A. Care Health Plan. Participants will learn more about the SBIRT benefit, ... March 19, 2014 Medi-Cal Continuig Medical Education, Medi-Cal, Webinars, CME 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMS suspends RAC audits, sets up physician safeguards Physicians and hospitals will get a short reprieve from Medicare’s recovery audit contractors (RAC) until next fall, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The agency says it is temporarily halting audits as it reevaluates its contracts and implements improvements for physicians. The RAC program is responsible for identifying fraud and waste in the Medicare system by detecting improper Medicare payments. Last month, CMS announced it would pause any new additional document requests (ADR) from RACs until new contracts are settled, in order to reduce provider confusion ... March 19, 2014 Medicare Medicare, RAC, Recovery Audit Contractor, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
Medicare ICD-10 front-end testing week extended Due to the success of the first week of ICD-10 testing, Noridian has partnered with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to continue acceptance testing for EDI submitters and vendors for an indefinite period. The purpose of acceptance testing is to ensure that base system functionality and front end editing have been updated for ICD-10 and are functioning correctly. Acceptance testing will help ensure you are ready for the October 2014 implementation of ICD-10. The California Medical Association (CMA) encourages all direct EDI submitters and vendors to test with Noridian. ... March 19, 2014 Medicare ICD-10, Medicare, Insurance/Reimbursement, Noridian 0 0 Comment Read More »
House-passed SGR repeal with mandate penalty delay is DOA In a 238-181 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed HR 4015, a bill to repeal the Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) and put in place a replacement payment system with an amendment offered by House Republican leaders that would pay for the repeal through a five-year delay of the Affordable Care act's individual mandate penalty. Though cheered by House Republicans, the legislation is viewed as "dead on arrival" by policy analysts and health care providers, as its defeat in the U.S. Senate is a near certainty. The move ... March 17, 2014 Medicare Insurance/Reimbursement, Advocacy, Medicare 0 0 Comment Read More »
Report says CURES database provisions in MICRA ballot measure cannot be implemented Today, the Patients, Providers and Healthcare Insurers to Protect Access & Contain Health Costs campaign released a report that raises serious doubts about whether a key provision of the trial lawyers' proposed anti-MICRA ballot measure can be feasibly implemented. Even worse, according to the report, the ballot measure would put physicians and pharmacists in the impossible position of choosing between denying or delaying needed prescription medication to legitimately suffering patients and violating the law. In addition to more than quadrupling MICRA's cap on non-economic damages, the trial attorneys' proposed initiative would ... March 17, 2014 General CURES, MICRA, Professional Liability 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMS wants your input on practice transformation Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is asking physicians to respond to a questionnaire about the resources physicians will need to make the transition to value-based models of care that can better serve their patients. Comments are due April 8. “We understand you’re trying to run a practice and do a lot of other things, and you’re going to need a lot of support,” CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner said last week when she announced the request for information during the American Medical Association’s (AMA) National Advocacy Conference in Washington, ... March 12, 2014 General CMS, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services 0 0 Comment Read More »
Medi-Cal offers billing seminars April 22 and 23 in Anaheim Throughout the year, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) offers in person Medi-Cal training seminars, designed for providers and billing staff at all levels. The next two seminars are scheduled for April 22 and 23, 2014, at the Anaheim Convention Center. These seminars cover the following topics: Changes to Medi-Cal billing ICD-10 overview Basic and advanced billing issues Provider-specific billing questions Specialty programs such as California Children’s Services/Genetically Handicapped Persons Program For more information or ... March 12, 2014 Medi-Cal Billing/Coding, Medi-Cal, Practice Management, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
New Member Benefit: Members save 50% on DaisyBill RBRVS Calculator The California Medical Association (CMA) is pleased to announce a new valuable benefit for CMA members – 50 percent off DaisyBill’s workers' compensation RBRVS Calculator, plus a special introductory rate of 80 percent off through the end of June. That works out to $9.80 per user per month until June, then $24.50 per month thereafter. With DaisyBill’s calculator, you can quickly and easily determine the correct reimbursement amount for workers’ compensation medical services. This is time and money saving benefit will help physician practices make sense of California’s new ... March 12, 2014 General Member Benefits, Member Discounts, Workers Compensation, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
Practices required to use new CMS 1500 claim form beginning April 1 Earlier this year, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved the revised Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 1500 claim form (version 02/12 OMB control number 0938-1197). The CMS 1500 claim form is the required format for submitting paper claims to Medicare. As of April 1, 2014, CMS will no longer accept paper claims on the old form. Until then, CMS is accepting both the old and new forms. The revised form adds the following functionality: Indicators for differentiating between ICD-9 and ICD-10 ... March 12, 2014 Medicare Billing/Coding, Medicare, Practice Management, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
Physicians: Call Congress Now RE Medicare SGR Repeal and Payment Reform Medicare SGR Repeal and Payment Reform: HR 4015/S 2000 DON'T PATCH IT, REPEAL IT! Physicians: Call Congress Now! (800) 833-6354 (Takes 2 minutes). Reform won't happen unless Congress hears from thousands of physicians! Click here to learn more. March 12, 2014 Medicare SGR, Sustainable Growth Rate, Medicare 0 0 Comment Read More »
