3405 Kenyon St., Ste. 300
San Diego, CA 92110 Tel: (619) 757-2200
Fax: (619) 757-2230 |
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Services: |
Medical Billing and Collections
Coding / Compliance Programs, Medical Chart Reviews
Billing / EMR System Sales and Support
Contracting and Credentialing (Payers/IPA's)
Medical Office Staff Education and Training
Contract Review, Fee Schedule Analysis
New Practice Setup
Bookkeeping Services |
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Our Mission
To optimize financial performance by combining personal integrity, innovative technology, and practical experience for the benefit of our valued physician clients. |
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21% Medicare Pay Cut Back On Again |
| The Senate has adjourned for a two-week Spring Recess without approving a short-term measure that would have extended the freeze on Medicare's current payment rates through April 30th. As a result, the 21.3 percent cut to Medicare physician payments is again scheduled to take effect on April 1st.
In recent months, CMS has instructed carriers to temporarily hold claims which they are again expected to do. The 14-day hold normally placed on electronic claims should give lawmakers an opportunity to enact another 30-day extension when they return on April 12th. Assuming the measure passes, physicians should see little or no disruption in their Medicare payments. |
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New G Code for E-Prescribing in 2010 |
| As of January 1st, CMS has issued a new G code with the following descriptor:
G8553 - At least one prescription created during the encounter was generated and transmitted electronically using a qualified eRx system.
Physicians will now report an e-prescribing code only when a visit results in an electronic prescription being placed. This new code must be reported at least 25 times during the reporting period to be considered successful by Medicare. Also keep in mind that this measure's "denominator codes" (think office visits) must account for at least 10% of your total Medicare charges.
By contrast, physicians in 2009 needed to report on 50% of applicable cases but had three G codes to choose from - G8443, G8445, and G8446. If your superbill still contains these old G codes, please update it with the new G8553 code as soon as possible. |
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CMS Policy Change on Date of Service (DOS) |
CMS plans to implement new instructions regarding proper date of service (DOS) reporting as of July 1st. The new policy indicates that providers should choose the actual interpretation date as the DOS for diagnostic test interpretation.
This has created confusion for practices that perform a diagnostic test on one day and interpret the results on another. There is concern that the billing for these tests will now have to be split into separate charges for the technical and professional components when they occur on different days. Several specialty societies have asked CMS to reconsider this policy change in light of its impact on global billing of diagnostic tests. |
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Aetna Reduces Rate for Assistant Surgeons |
| Effective May 1st, Aetna will reduce its reimbursement rate for surgical assists from 20% of the negotiated or contracted rate to 16% of the negotiated or contracted rate. For multiple surgical procedures, Aetna will pay 16% for the primary procedure, 8% for the second eligible procedure, and 4% for each additional eligible procedure. |
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PDS Staff Receive McKesson Certification |
| Through our strategic partnership with Medvantech, PDS staff recently completed a week-long training course on the Lytec Practice Management System (PMS). After successfully passing the examination, we are now certified by McKesson as a Value Added Reseller for their Lytec software.
PDS recognizes that the medical marketplace is changing rapidly. As a result, we are expanding our products and services in order to better serve our physician clients. We believe that McKesson's newly enhanced Lytec PM system and well-established Practice Partner EMR offer exceptional value to physicians considering an integrated solution for their billing and electronic medical record needs.
We look forward to sharing more details on this exciting new project with interested physicians and medical office staff in the coming weeks! |
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Dear Friends & Valued Clients,
We hope you'll find this electronic newsletter to be informative, quick, and convenient. If you do, please feel free to share it with a friend or colleague by clicking on the Forward email link below.
Got a question, concern, compliment, or criticism you'd like to share? We want to hear from you! Please call Chris at (619) 757-2200 or send an email to feedback@pdsmedical.com to share your thoughts and suggestions. Thank you!
Chris Burns, President
(619) 757-2200 x102 |
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