December 11, 2020 | By Pam Vanderbilt, CPC, CPMA, CPPM, CPC-I, CEMC, CEMA, CEMA-O There is a long-standing rule in our family that Christmas is not allowed to start until the Thanksgiving dinner dishes are washed and put away. I must be completely honest; that family rule has been thrown out the window this…
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February 12, 2021 | By Pam Vanderbilt, CPC, CPMA, CPPM, CPC-I, CEMC, CEMA, CEMA-O A few weeks ago, NAMAS presented a webinar about 2021 time and prolonged services. The flood of participant questions made it very obvious there is still uncertainty about how to appropriately use time to select the level of office…
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July 9, 2021 | By Shannon DeConda, CPC, CEMC, CEMA, CPMA, CRTT After 6 months of speaking to the 2021 AMA guidelines, many of you may be tired of talking about the new documentation guidelines. But the other half of us are frustrated at still seeing documentation come through that represents the mandated…
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June 11, 2021 | Edward Townley CPC, CEMC, CUC, ROCC, Founder, Cogent9 Consulting Challenges for patients in cancer care include many devastating factors, including loss of a job or changes in job status, such as switching to part-time work or taking extended leave. For those who have a job to return to, there are…
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July 2, 2021 | By Pam Brooks, MHA, COC, CPC As an auditor, you might find that the “meat and potatoes” of the audit is the most interesting part. Then you finish and it is time to pull together your findings into an executive summary. The best and most effective executive summary design is…
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June 25, 2021 | By Stephanie Allard, CPC, CEMA, RHIT When I ask practices if they have been through an external audit recently, they typically will state “no” or let me know if recent requests for a larger number encounter notes have been received. Through these conversations, I realize that they are not noticing…
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June 18, 2021 | By Bryan Meek, Esq., Brennan, Manna, and Diamond The pandemic has undisputedly changed the way in which Americans live their daily lives, including how they receive medical care. Patients have increasingly been receiving care via telemedicine, virtual check-ins, or e-visits in order to avoid physically going to their appointments and…
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June 4, 2021 | By Cheryl A. Cyrus, RHIT, CPMA, CDEO, CRC, Comforcehealth, Quality Assurance Auditor As of January 1, 2021, we have been given new Evaluation and Management Guidelines for Outpatient Office and Ambulatory services that encompass specific areas of risk defined in the SDOH (Social Determinants of Health). As a Profee auditor,…
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May 28, 2021 | Aimee L. Wilcox, CPMA, CCS-P, CST, MA, MT, Director of Content, innoviHealth Prolonged services codes were created to capture reimbursement for time spent with a patient that goes beyond the typical time associated with the primary service. We’re all aware of those patients that, unexpectedly, require so much prolonged provider…
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May 21, 2021 | By Stanley Nachimson, Nachimson Advisors April 5th 2021 was a major day in the history of patient data access. On that day, providers, vendors, and health information networks were required, under federal regulation, to make patient data available electronically to patients. The federal rule, 21st Century Cures Act: Interoperability, Information Blocking,…
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