2014 Midwest AAOE Spring Meeting
April 4th and 5th Camden on the Lake Lake Ozark, MO Online Registration We are getting close to the 2014 Midwest AAOE Spring Meeting at Camden on the Lake and there is still time to register! We have a great lineup of speakers this year that you will not want to miss. We look forward to seeing you on the lake!
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ICD-10 Limited End-to-End Testing
with Submitters
As a result of persistent AMA advocacy, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced that they will conduct end-to-end testing with a limited number of health care providers of varying sizes and types, including physician practices. The testing will take place July 21 - 25. Testing will be done on the full claims process from submission of the claim to Medicare through to receipt of the remittance advice by the physician.
The following are details you need to know to register to participate in this testing.
- Interested physicians need to register with their Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC). Volunteer forms will be available on your MAC's website as of March 7. Physicians will need to verify that they are ready to test. Completed forms must be submitted to your MAC by March 24.
- By April 14, MACs will notify the physicians and other providers that have been selected for the testing. Only 32 physicians and other providers will be selected by each MAC.
- Testing will be completed July 21 - 25. MACs will provide the testers with the specific details for how to complete the testing. Physicians can submit a total of 50 claims.
CMS is requesting that physicians interested in participating in the end-to-end testing have their ICD-10 updated software in place and internal testing completed prior to the July dates. The intent of testing is to ensure that your systems and workflow process that have been updated for ICD-10 are functioning correctly.
Additional information on the end-to-end testing is available in the following Medicare Learning Network article: www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Medicare-Learning-Network-MLN/MLNMattersArticles/Downloads/MM8602.pdf
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Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed their version of the sustainable growth rate (SGR) repeal and replacement legislation. While the underlying SGR plan is bipartisan, the House-passed version of the SGR legislation pays for the bill through a suspension of the individual mandate requirement in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Democrats are strongly objecting to this pay-for, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid insisting he won't take up the House plan. Additionally, President Barack Obama has stated that he would veto the House bill. "[The bill] includes an offset that would increase health insurance premiums, decrease tax credits, increase the number of uninsured and shift costs to businesses, workers and health care providers," says a statement of administration policy. Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate have been unable to agree on a path to fund the legislation and both parties say efforts to find a bipartisan pay-for are stagnating.
In response to the current debate on SGR pay-fors, Joshua J. Jacobs, MD, past president of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) issued a statement expressing concerns echoed by many in the medical community.
Click here to read more.
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