No mystery shopper required: Private insurance acceptance declines faster than Medicare
July 6th 2011The controversy may have been focused on the government plan to use mystery shoppers to surreptitiously check how many physician offices were open to Medicare and other public insurance patients. But the bigger problem is acceptance of private insurance by medical practices that have to jump through hoops to get paid, according to a new study.
Survey: Forming an ACO ultimately is a people problem
June 29th 2011Lack of capital, integrated systems and evidence-based treatment protocol data all play into the difficulty of creating an accountable care organization (ACO).The biggest challenge, however, is a personnel issue, and how physicians and hospitals will work together to resolve it.
An Apple a day? Tablet use may soon top 50% for physicians
June 29th 2011When it comes to technology, an apple a day does not keep the doctor away. In fact, physicians prefer Apples?or, at least the Apple platforms that run the iPad and iPhone. Nearly 30% of physicians use an iPad?6 times more than general U.S. consumers?and more than 60% of physicians who use smartphones have an iPhone.
Health plans process almost 20% of claims incorrectly, and it's getting worse
June 29th 2011If it seems like it?s harder than ever to get proper payment, it?s not just your imagination. According to the American Medical Association (AMA), health plans make errors in nearly 1 out of 5 claims. Electronic data interchange may help a little.
Big Brother EHR is watching you; protect yourself against lawsuits
June 29th 2011Here?s an electronic health record (EHR) ?benefit,? you may not have considered: Opposing lawyers can use the system?s tracking mechanism, called the audit trail, to strengthen their case against you in a malpractice case. Learn how to protect yourself.
Like it or not, drug makers have right to your prescribing information
June 29th 2011The U.S. Supreme Court said that a Vermont law prohibiting sale of prescription data to drug companies interfered with the pharmaceutical industry's First Amendment right to market its products. A recent survey suggests that the decision will not come as good news to many physicians who feel as if their privacy is being invaded.
Making clinical integration work
June 25th 2011To many physicians, the current healthcare environment is complex and overwhelming. From accountable care organizations, global capitation, and value-based purchasing to episode payments, episode groupers, and bundled payments, the terminology seems to be addressed to larger organizations than small primary care groups.
Primary care compensation increasing, but has far to go to reach specialist levels
June 22nd 2011If you are a primary care physician, the good news is that your median compensation probably increased from 2009 to 2010. The bad news is that you still are making substantially less? sometimes less than half as much? as some of the higher-paid medical specialties. Now, the AAFP is seeking to do something about who determines the relative value of physician services.
Study: Empowering staff with information is key to clinical transformation
June 22nd 2011When it comes to clinical transformation, information really is power. And if you don?t share enough information to empower staff, you probably won't get the results you want. That was the lesson from a recent study by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and McKesson, the health care technology company. Your practice can plan now to avoid those problems.