The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a reminder Aug. 24 to health care providers, health plans, clearinghouses, and vendors about the approaching compliance dates for the transition to the Accredited Standards Committee X12 Technical Reports Type 3, Version 005010 (Version 5010) electronic health care transaction standards. Beginning January 2011, entities covered under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) should be ready to test with their trading partners the functionality of the entities’ practice management and/or other related software featuring Version 5010 standards.

That date is right around the corner. Are you ready?

Read more »

Medical Coding Professionals meeting in Springfield, MA

SALT LAKE CITY — Aug. 16, 2010 —AAPC announced its 2010 Regional Conference being held at the Sheraton Springfield Monarch Place hotel in Springfield, Massachusetts on October 7–9.  This annual event draws hundreds of attendees including medical coders, office/practice managers and doctors to connect on the business side of health care.

“Attendees will enjoy in-depth training by world-class instructors and several keynote presentations by industry experts,” said Melanie Mestas, senior events manager.

Registration is now open for this two-day regional conference, which provides the same high quality coding education as AAPC’s larger national conference, but in a smaller setting. Participants will brush up on coding skills, learn about changing rules and regulations, network with fellow coders and other medical professionals. Read more »

Deborah Grider CPC, CPC-H, CPC-I, CPC-P, CPMA, CEMC, COBGC, CPCD, CCS-P, AAPC president and CEO discusses the new and upcoming challenges coders face in today’s health care environment.

Full Article

One of the largest hurdles in practices has always been clinical documentation and what is needed to justify medical necessity. Rhonda Buckholtz, CPC, CPMA, CPC-I, CGSC, COBGC, CPEDC, CENTC, vice president of business and member development for AAPC, shares six steps to improve documentation to improve reimbursement and make a smooth transition to ICD-10.

Full Article

Deborah Grider, CPC, CPC-H, CPC-I, CPC-P, CPMA, CEMC, COBGC, CPCD, CCS-P, AAPC president and CEO, discusses the move to ICD-10-CM codes and the need for physicians to start preparing for it now.

Full Article

One of the biggest challenges physicians face in regards to demonstrating meaningful use of electronic health records (EHRs), according to the American Medical Association (AMA), is the lack of certified EHR systems supporting meaningful use currently available in the market. If Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin is any indication, however, hospitals eligible to participate in the EHR Incentive Program need not worry about the certified EHR technology they’ll use. Getting all their physicians on board will be a much greater obstacle.

Becoming a meaningful user of EHR technology is “more of an operational project than an IT project,” said Michael Cummens, Marshfield’s associate chief medical information officer.

For example, he said, orthopedic specialists often don’t see the value in taking patients’ vital signs or recording their smoking status, but these are government quality measures, so the key is to engineer the work flow so that someone else on the care team performs these tasks. This will serve to “minimize the demands on providers as much as possible,” Cummens said.

Modern Healthcare reports on how Marshfield Clinic’s proactive approach and positive attitude have put them ahead of the game—not just for EHR incentive requirements but for ICD-10 implementation as well.

AAPC member Jacqueline Thelian, CPC, CPC-I, shares tips on how practices can prepare for ICD-10 and get the implementation ball rolling now.

Full Article

Disease classification has been around for centuries. In today’s modern world, disease classification is important to everything from research funding, to reporting, to health care claim submission.  AAPC member Angela “Annie” Boynton, RHIT, CPC, CCS, CPC-H, CCS-P, CPC-P, CPC-I, discusses diagnostic and procedure codes and the need for advanced planning for ICD-10 to ensure a healthy transition. This article is not available online but can be found in the June issue of Health Cost Management.

Rhonda Buckholtz, CPC, CPMA, CPC-I, CGSC, COBGC, CPEDC, CENTC, vice president of business and member development for AAPC, discusses the need for physicians and practice managers to understand the basics of ICD-10 implementation in order to be prepared for the Oct. 1, 2013 deadline. The article is published by the San Diego County Medical Society.

Full Article

Rhonda Buckholtz, CPC, CPMA, CPC-I, CGSC, COBGC, CPEDC, CENTC, vice president of business and member development for AAPC, is quoted in this article stating that “[A code freeze] allows coders, physicians, and facilities to learn the new code set without having multiple changes along the way.” The article shares insights from experts including Buckholtz on the pros and cons of freezing the codes prior to the October 1, 2013 deadline.

Full Article