September 2008
E-Prescribing Standards
Finalized
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued uniform standards,
effective April 1, 2009, for electronic prescribing under the Medicare Part
D prescription drug program. Physicians participating in Medicare are not
required to adopt e-prescribing, but must follow the standards if they do.
The transmission standards are intended to facilitate widespread use of
e-prescribing and help reduce the estimated 530,000 annual adverse drug
events among Medicare beneficiaries.
Read more...
Medicaid Tamper-Resistant Prescription Information
Since April 1, 2008, all written prescriptions for outpatient drugs prescribed to a Medicaid beneficiary have had to be on paper with at least one tamper-resistant feature as outlined by CMS. Beginning October 1, 2008, these same prescriptions must be on paper that meets all three baseline characteristics of tamper-resistant pads. The following links to recently updated CMS documents may be helpful to you: State Medicaid Director Letter, Medicaid Tamper Resistant Prescription Information for State Policymakers, Frequently Asked Questions on Tamper Resistant Prescriptions, Implementation Status by State and Fact Sheet for Pharmacists with State Contact Information.
Adoption of EHR Systems
A 2007 survey by the
American Academy of Family
Physicians measured the growth in the use of electronic health record (EHR)
systems. Among the responding physicians, 37% were already using an EHR, 13%
were implementing a system and 26% planned a future purchase. Only about
25% had no plans to use an EHR, 42% of them because of concern about
decreasing productivity. Nearly all those implementing an EHR now or
planning to implement one want to manage patient medication lists, manage
patient problem lists and access patient summaries.
Somerset Health Care Team News
Construction
Progress. The Nebraska Professional Center construction is progressing
on schedule--this photo was taken on September 11. When complete in early
2009, it will be a 120,778 square foot facility in Omaha, Nebraska. It will house Nebraska Spine Center, other medical, an imaging center, physical therapy, research offices
and mixed-use space. Somerset
is providing entity formation, capital and finance sourcing and construction
oversight and liaison services. If you are considering renovation or
development of "owned" medical office space or a surgery center, Somerset
can provide real value to your practice. To explore how we can work
together, please contact
Steve Dobias at 317-472-2190 or 800-469-7206.
Visit our web site for additional
ASC/MOB project information.
Somerset
PRO-Forum. The Somerset Health Care Team has developed a managerial model unique to the
industry. The model has four suites that record and compare performance
against industry benchmarks in the areas of financial profit/loss, revenue
cycle effectiveness and physician coding norms. The fourth suite is a fee
analyzer that supports a fee schedule based on payer reimbursement,
geography and increased revenue versus increased contractual allowance
realization. The revolutionary aspect of the Somerset model is the
managerial component of the model.
Learn
more about PRO-Forum by clicking the image on the right and plan to attend
one of our
upcoming webinars on September 25 or October 21.
Financial Literacy for Women
Seminar Series. Kathy Rokita
will be co-presenting "Cash Flow and Budgeting for Women" on Wednesday, October
1 as part of Somerset's Financial Literacy for Women educational series. This will be
held in Somerset's Conference Center in Indianapolis, IN. Please
view our video about the series and
visit our
web site for additional information.
AAOS Conferences. Mike
McCaslin will be presenting "Retirement Planning" at the conference being
held in Tucson, AZ from October 10 to 12. He will be presenting "Ancillary
Services: Whether and When" at the orthopaedic practice management conferences in Washington, DC from October
17 to 19 and in Las Vegas, NV from October 21 to 23.
Annual MGMA Conference.
Cathy Weaver
will be speaking at the
annual
Medical Group Management Association conference in San Diego, CA. Her
presentation will be on October 21, and the topic is "High Deductible Health
Plans and Health Savings Accounts: How to Understand and Manage These
Emerging Products That Have Patients and Providers Mutually-Mystified."
During the conference, the Somerset Health Care Team will be hosting a
reception on Monday, October 20 at a restaurant
across from the San Diego Convention Center. If you would like to attend,
please
contact us.
15th Annual Improving
Profitability of ASCs Business and Legal Issues Conference. This
conference is being presented by ASC Communications, Inc., and Ambulatory
Surgery Foundation from October 23 to 25 in Chicago, IL. On the 24th, Steve
Dobias will co-present "Which Back-Office Services Can You Effectively
Outsource? What Works; What Doesn't Work? What Are the Costs and Benefits?"
Also on the 24th, Cathy Weaver will co-present "Current Strategies to Handle
Out-of-Network and High Deductible Patients." For more information about the
conference,
visit the Becker's ASC Review site.
Health Care Commentaries is provided by Somerset’s Health Care Team for our clients and other interested persons upon request. Since technical information is presented in generalized fashion, no final conclusion on these topics should be made without further review. For additional information on the issues discussed, please contact a member of our Health Care Team. This document is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer.
Somerset CPAs, P.C.
3925 River Crossing Parkway, Third Floor
Indianapolis, Indiana 46240
317.472.2200 • 800.469.7206 • FAX 317.208.1200
http://healthcare.somersetcpas.com
info@somersetcpas.com