Issue: #17September 2015


In This Issue
The Importance of Transparency
ICD-10 Transition
Employee Spotlight
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Dear SMB Client,

 

We hope you had a wonderful and relaxing summer.  Over the summer, SMB has focused on the October 1st ICD-10 transition. We are confident, moving into the fall, that the transition will be smooth and seamless to our clients.   In this newsletter, we will articulate the importance of transparency during the transition and give you some helpful hints in coding for the ICD-10 transition.  In addition, we will highlight our Billing Specialist, Kelly Trautman.

 

We hope you enjoy reading our newsletter.

 

Sincerely, 

SMB 

 

The Importance of Transparency
By: Chad Bixler
  
Chad
Chad Bixler, Business Development
SMB gives you full control, transparency and you are able to validate how your claims are handled.

Without transparency, control and the ability to validate your billing process, you lose oversight.  Because without transparency you:
  1. Dramatically increase risk of a audit
  2. Lose validation of HIPAA compliance issues
  3. Better chance of high accounts receivables
  4. Increase risk that reimbursements are not being maximized
SMB provides four tiers of transparency for your practice:
  1. Operational
  2. SimplyPodiatry™ Reports
  3. SMB's SimplyPodiatry™ 24/7 real-time cloud based system
  4. Access to individual data elements of each claim 
"SMB's service has allowed me to expand my practice and increase revenue." - Current SMB Client.
 
If you would like to know more about how SMB provides complete transparency with you office, I am available at 1-888-874-5503 or email at Chad@SMBMedicalBilling.com  for your convenience.  

ICD-10 Transition

By: Tammy Coetzee
  
 In an effort to make the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10 as smoothly as possible for our clients, we have been conducting testing in phases.  Our first phase was to make sure our software could handle the new codes and transmit correctly to our clearinghouse.  Once we received the green light that we were ready in that phase, we moved on to testing with our staff.  During this time we have been training and gaining knowledge of the ICD-10 codes along the way to make sure we can guide the physicians in the right direction, as well as get the claims out correctly the first time.  Now we are in our final stage of testing which is dual coding with the physicians.  Our physicians are submitting their claims to us using ICD-9 and ICD-10 codes to get practice.  Our billing specialists are giving feedback on the new codes in an effort to help the physicians get their claims coded correctly.  Starting a couple of months early with this process has proved to be of great benefit to all of our clients.

 

A few helpful hints when coding using ICD-10.

 

1.        Don't use any code that has the word "unspecified" in the description.  Use the most specific code you can find.

2.       When using codes that specify right or left sides, make sure you are consistently using the same side (if it pertains to the same side).  Example: coding a fracture for right foot and adding pain for the right foot.

3.       Documentation is very important.  Document everything as detailed as possible.

4.       Encoder Pro is a great resource to have.  https://www.optumcoding.com/Product/20510/

5.       CMS is appointing an ICD-10 Ombudsman to be available October 1.  Physicians can submit issues with ICD-10 to the Ombudsman.

 

Employee Spotlight: Kelly Trautman

  
Kelly Trautman, Billing Specialist


ABOUT ME AND MY FAMILY:
 
My husband Steve and I have been married for 19 years(together for 23).  We have 2 beautiful daughters ages 16 and 13. My 16 year old plays tennis and is very involved in school.  My 13 year old plays competitive soccer and dances competitively.  They are extremely busy and active with school, sports and friends so they keep us on our toes at all times.

 
FUN(NY) FACTS:
  • I absolutely love hanging out with my family, we have a very close relationship.  You can often find us talking and laughing. 
  • I love to play tennis and swim.  
  • We enjoy supporting our children and watching them do all the things they love. 
 
MY GOALS TO HELP YOUR PRACTICE:
 
I have done billing for 23 years and worked for SMB for 9 years.  My goal is to have a great relationship with my offices by keeping the lines of communication open at all times.  I will answer any questions the office may have and if I don't know the answer I will find out.   I strive to make sure my doctors receive the reimbursement they deserve and feel confident in my ability to take care of their billing needs.  
From all of us at SMB, we hope you have a wonderful fall.  Thank you for reading our quarterly newsletter.

Sincerely,
SMB