As we reach the end of 2018, a lot of reflection is happening from everyone – both personally and professionally. The team at Tower Physicians Solutions wants to help offer some tips or resolutions that your Nephrology Practice can make for 2019 in order to grow your medical practice and improve patient care. Where do you see your practice headed in 2019? 

Click here for some ideas on how to build a great company culture.

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Keep Your Medical Staff Happy this Holiday Season!

Happy workers are also known as “engaged” workers. Engagement in the workforce has a direct correlation to productivity. Engaged employees are less likely to leave your facility in search of a new position. For the sake of your patients and your facility’s reputation, it’s always a good idea to take steps to keep your employees happy on the job. Healthcare can be a very demanding career, with large caseloads, long shifts and – on occasion – difficult patients. Many healthcare professionals can suffer job strain, especially around the holidays, that drags them down throughout the workweek; it’s your job as an employer to help your healthcare workers stay on task and in high spirits.

Click here for some ideas on how to build a great company culture.

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Very important dates for MACRA 2018 - 2019

The year is almost over and we gathered important dates that you should note going into 2019. As always the experts at Tower are here to be your MIPS/MACRA resource. Starting your reporting early can help you catch errors and improve processes!

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Your practice’s revenue and the self-pay patient

In healthcare today, patient financial responsibility is on the rise. Patients are increasingly responsible for a higher percentage of their own healthcare costs. Employers are shifting those costs to employees, and insurers are offering high deductible health plans which increases out-of-pocket expenses. It's also harder for healthcare organizations to get paid for the care they provide. When patients can’t pay, your accounts receivables (AR) days go up, cash flow slows down, bad debt mounts and revenue shortfalls are almost inevitable.

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5 WAYS TO PASS YOUR NEXT MEDICARE AUDIT

A medical practice can pass a Medicare audit easily if they have the right information. One of the consequences of treating Medicare patients is that the practice is then subject to Medicare audits. These can lead to the suspension of payments and Medicare fees. For a practice with lots of Medicare patient accounts, this can cause a financial crisis.

Unfortunately, Medicare audits are a necessary part of the system. Healthcare waste, fraud, and abuse lead CMS (the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) to be diligent in recovering as much federal money as possible. This places a burden on facilities that follow the rules. Even when there is no intent to be dishonest, the practice can still face penalties if found guilty of improper Medicare billing.

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How to Get the Most Out of Your Medical Billing

 

The most successful nephrology practices don’t reach their position in the industry without paying close attention to all aspects of their revenue cycle. Of course, success is based on numerous factors and not just on the financial side of things at your organization. You may have assembled a group of highly dedicated medical professionals who are at the top of their game. You also have a large base of satisfied and loyal patients, many of whom also happen to refer new patients to you.

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REDUCE INCORRECT BILLING WITH A PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

One of the biggest financial problems that have affected Nephrology medical practices is inaccurate billing and coding at various stages of the medical billing process. Incorrect billing and coding can occur due to several reasons, including slow collection of patient receivables and coding at improper levels. Medical errors can happen anytime, even by the most professional and well-trained staff members. By automating outsourcing billing functions with a practice management solution, you’re effectively eliminating unnecessary medical practice expenses.

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MIPS: Start your MIPS reporting early

Starting your MIPS reporting early can help you catch errors and improve processes! Early reporting can also help to improve MIPS scores in the second half of this year and alleviate that last minute pressure to report before the deadline…

Tips for tackling 2018 reporting: Identify your deficiencies in 2017 reporting and focus to improve those areas. The minimum number of measures to report has increased, in fact it’s beneficial to report on as many measures as possible. Review the list of 92 improvement activities, and identify at least one improvement activity your practice completed for each activity in 2017. The most affordable and easiest way to submit data on improvement activities is by attesting to participation via the new data submission system on the QPP website..

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What Your Nephrology Practice Should Know…MIPS/MACRA Updates 2018

The trend toward value-based payments began with the implementation of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) that was signed into law in April 2015. Since then, there have been updates and additional programs included in MACRA, such as the Quality Payment Program (QPP). MACRA created a new framework for independent physicians who will be rewarded financially for providing high-quality care. Physicians may qualify for one of two tracks for payment: Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (AAPMs).

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IMPROVING YOUR ICD-10 CODING

Why are there so many ways to submit an ICD-10 cause code? As a medical billing department specializing in Nephrology, we know it can be frustrating to try to sort out the differences in coding requirements among various payors. The more individualized your coding is on claims, the cleaner your claims submissions will be, resulting in more expeditious reimbursement.

Education Improves Coding Accuracy

If your practice management system does not automatically update coding according to the level of service indicated in your visit notes, then it’s essential to know how to choose the appropriate codes for service and procedures provided. Not only is this a key step in the revenue cycle, but accuracy at this point may be evaluated in an audit.

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May 14th

Hill Day and NCAP Forum June 22-24!

This year, RPA's annual Hill Day is June 22, followed by the NCAP Advocacy Forum on June 23 and 24. RPA's Advocacy Weekend is open to all nephrology providers and practice managers and NANI’s leaders will be there.

According to NCAP attendee and practice CEO Brian O'Dea, CPA, "All the thought leaders in nephrology are here. We get to work with other groups to find out what they are doing around the country and share our collective knowledge. You realize that you aren't out there alone."

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April 20th

What makes Us Better in Medical Billing

Moving your practice billing functions to a third-party service is a high-stakes decision and one with plenty of options to choose from. You can work with a large organization, a small billing company or a technology provider, but it’s ultimately not about a billing firm’s size, scope, or software – it’s about service… and more specifically, the quality of that service. You’ll want to choose a billing company who has experience in your field of medicine.

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March 29th

NEPHROLOGY TODAY INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN O'DEA Employment Contracts with New Physicians, What can you Expect?

Brian O’Dea, CFO/COO of NANI discusses what new physicians need to know about contract negotiations. Learn how to successfully master the negotiation when the time comes by working with the professional at Tower.

O’Dea says that one mistake is not asking questions during employment contract negotiation. Many new physicians are uncomfortable asking questions because they may not have much knowledge of contracts or the business of healthcare. Generally, this isn't taught in medical school or residency. New physicians should feel no compunction about asking for definitions of terms or probing for specifics. Of course, it helps to know what to ask.

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March 12th

MIPS/MACRA: 6 Things You Need to Know in 2018

PART 2

The Quality Payment Program (QPP), which resulted from the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), is designed to reward or penalize physicians based on the quality of patient care they provide. Last year, physicians could “Pick Your Pace” through an introductory program that allowed physicians to test the waters. But in 2018 physicians will have to more fully engage with the program or risk a negative payment adjustment of up to 5 percent in 2020. Successful participation could earn a positive payment adjustment of 5 percent or more in that year.

QPP will be updated annually through the federal rule-making process. The 2018 rules, released on Nov. 2, made significant changes in six key areas. Physicians participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) track of QPP will need to focus on these changes to succeed during the 2018 performance period.

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March 6th

WE ARE HEADED TO ORLANDO!

NANI & Tower's Brian O'Dea and Antone Crasto will be headed to Orlando March 15th-18th for the RPA Annual Meeting!

The landscape for medical group practices continues to change. Mergers, acquisitions, and new partnerships bring not only new challenges, but incredible opportunities for physician practices. As a growing number of physicians consider divesting their practices to adapt to today's practice environment, there are many factors to consider.

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February 16th

Brian O’Dea, CFO/COO of NANI NEPHROLOGY TODAY PODCAST