Tax Update
nbsp Standard Mileage Rates Beginning on , the standard mileage rates for cars, vans, pickups, and panel trucks will be cents per mile for business miles, . cents per mile... Read More >
Draft Instructions for New IRS Form 8959
nbsp The IRS has released draft instructions for Form , which individuals will use to calculate the amount of additional . Medicare tax owed. The instructions are available at www.irs.gov... Read More >
Metrics for Physician Office Phone Staff
Optimize your healthcare practice's phone operations with key metrics to improve patient experience and staff efficiency. Track call times, peak periods, and more. Read More >
Compromised PHI in physician office – what to do
nbsp In order to determine whether PHI has been compromised in a physician office, you should always consider the following The nature and extent of PHI involved, including the types... Read More >
CMS finalizes physician payment rates for 2014
nbsp The Centers for Medicare amp Medicaid Services CMS has finalized payment rates and policies for , including a major proposal to support care management outside the routine office interaction... Read More >
emuniversity.com – training tool for physician offices
nbsp Recent client question Do you know of a good simple reference book for teaching our physician office staff the basics of E amp M coding for internal audits, perhaps... Read More >
Partial Measures Won’t Protect Physician Providers From FCA Liability
nbsp A recently concluded FCA suit involving a Wisconsin physician practice and a onetime billing department worker allegedly fired for trying to prevent overcharging of the federal government feeds uncertainty... Read More >
A recommendation on how to handle employee gossip in the physician office
nbsp Question I need some advice on how to handle a group of mean girls in the office. The have all been on a counseling step for different reasons at... Read More >
Physicians acting badly
nbsp A number of physicians were recently indicted, convicted and sentenced for healthcare crimes. Here are a few examples. Remember this government is actively working to identify and prosecute physicians... Read More >
How to Improve Your Collection Calls Results
nbsp As part of your collection process most offices send a certain of statements before they start sending out collection notices usually statements for most practices , you should follow... Read More >
Is your physician practice ready for ICD-10?
nbsp It seems providers everywhere are asking the same question How should we prepare for the ICD- implementation deadline? A good place to start is to identify every way you... Read More >
Patients say they would pay more quickly with online access
nbsp Patients suggest that if physicians want to improve their collections, they should provide online access. An Intuit Health survey found that patients often are late in paying not because... Read More >
2014 Annual Update for the Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) Bonus Payments
Change Request CR alerts you that the annual HPSA bonus payment file for will be made available by the Centers for Medicare amp Medicaid Services CMS to your Medicare contractor... Read More >
Are you Eligible to Participate in PQRS?
nbsp CMS Physician Quality Reporting System PQRS program encourages the reporting of quality information through incentive payments through and payment adjustments beginning in . PQRS provides an incentive payment to... Read More >
Stolen laptop had patient information on it – Say hello to HIPAA
Another familiar HIPAA violation has struck again; pay attention people!!!!!!!! http://www.statesman.com/news/news/crime-law/seton-officials-stolen-laptop-has-patient-informat/nbT6W/ Read More >
Are payers taking advantage of Medicare’s 2% sequestration cut?
nbsp As you know, Medicare has imposted the government s across the board sequestration cut to your physician fee for service payments. Since many managed care payers pay physicians on... Read More >
Keeping your physician medical practice staff from leaving
nbsp Even Americans who are lucky enough to be working in this economy are becoming unhappy with their jobs. According to version of the Conference Board Job Satisfaction Survey, in... Read More >
OIG Advisory Opinion No. 13-10
nbsp On August , the U.S. Department of Health amp Human Services, Office of Inspector General OIG issued a favorable Advisory Opinion, - PDF , concerning an arrangement whereby a... Read More >
Collecting full payment at time of service for patients with managed care coverage
nbsp I recently received a call from a client asking if they can begin charging all patients at the time of service and refunding the patient s payment when insurance... Read More >
Hospital Ordered to Pay Millions for Stark and False Claims Act Violations
nbsp A Senior U.S. District Judge recently ordered the Tuomey Healthcare System to pay more than . million in False Claims Act FCA fines and Stark Law penalties. If you... Read More >
How physicians can prevent legal problems resulting from a merger
nbsp Physicians who are considering being part of a merger should weigh their risks and take steps to reduce potential legal hurdles here are some suggestions based on my experience... Read More >
How is patient access at your physician office?
nbsp Access, the time between a patient s request for an appointment and the next available appointment on your schedule, is a concern that is getting increasing attention. For medical... Read More >
Dear Doctor – Another reminder about patient satisfaction
nbsp As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, I m amazed at how many physician practices do such a poor job at patient customer service. This ultimately leads to... Read More >
Physician practice costs continue to outpace reimbursements
The pressure on medical practices to cope with rising operating costs is not just one of perception, but based on real, staggering numbers. In fact, the cost of operating a... Read More >
Steps to the Avoid the 2015 PQRS Negative Payment Adjustments for Individuals and Group Practices with 2-99 EPs
nbsp Physicians and other health care professionals who provide Medicare Part B Physician Fee Schedule PFS covered professional services need to be aware of a negative . payment adjustment under... Read More >
Health Care Reform Developments – 2014 Premium Rates
nbsp HHS released an issue brief disclosing the premium rates that will be available in the states in which HHS will support or fully run the state insurance marketplace. The... Read More >
Improving physician office productivity by improving office processes
nbsp Carefully reviewing, analyzing, and revising office processes can yield an improvement in office productivity I ve seen it many times. For maximum effectiveness, gather your team to conduct the... Read More >
KPMG Analysis Identifies Key Fraudster Traits
nbsp A senior employee known as an aggressive workaholic, but who seems stressed, yet rarely takes vacations, declines promotions, and zealously protects his business unit from outside scrutiny while personally... Read More >
Sept 2013 – RAC update
RACs identified half of all claims they reviewed for - as having resulted in improper payments totaling . billion. CMS took corrective actions to address the majority of vulnerabilities it... Read More >
Controlling rogue physicians
nbsp Colleagues I came up with the following recommendation for a doctor group wherein individual physicians were flaunting violation of group decisions. Has anyone tried this, or have any other... Read More >
Subscribe to my blog
Categories
Accounting and Tax Services Litigation Support Managed Care Consulting Managed Care Contract Negotiations Medical Practice and Healthcare Entity Valuation Medical Practice Assessment Medical Practice Brokerage Medical Practice Embezzlement Consulting Medical Practice Management Medical Practice Merger Advice Medical Strategic Planning Newsletter Personal Financial Planning Oversight Physician Compensation Models Physician Compliance Physician Financial Management Services Retirement UncategorizedAbout Reed Tinsley, CPA
As a top advisor to physicians, I help increase practice profits by delivering hands-on, expert medical accounting/tax support, practice counsel, and revenue-building strategies. Read More >
