Part B News | Part B News

Limits proposed for teaching physician billing

07/26/2021

You will find a couple of key revisions to the billing rules for teaching physicians should certain pieces of the proposed 2022 Medicare physician fee schedule take hold as planned.

Physician assistants would be paid directly under Part B

07/26/2021

by: Laura Evans CPC

CMS proposes to begin direct payment to physician assistants (PA) for professional services they provide. Right now, Medicare can only make payment to the PA’s employer or provider for whom the PA is a contractor. Under the proposal, mandated by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 that passed in December 2020, PAs would also be able to accept or reassign payment for their services.

Shared Savings ACOs get a year off from electronic clinical quality measures

07/26/2021

by: Roy Edroso

After their first year of using the Alternative Payment Model (APM) Performance Pathway (APP) reporting method, participants in the Shared Savings program are spared further challenges as CMS delays the full transition to electronic clinical quality measures (eCQM) and MIPS clinical quality measures (MIPS CQM) and scales back some program requirements.

Fee schedule round-up: Payment and policy updates

07/26/2021

by: DecisionHealth Staff

Don’t miss out on other important updates contained in the proposed 2022 Medicare physician fee schedule.

2022 fee tally: Winners and losers under the proposed physician fee schedule

07/26/2021

by: Richard Scott

As providers brace for a nearly 4% cut to the 2022 conversion factor, the impact of relative value unit (RVU) changes on specialties fluctuates from a 10% gain for portable X-ray suppliers to a -9% drop for interventional radiology.

Diagnosis codes for post-COVID-19, new social determinants of health go into effect Oct. 1

07/19/2021

by: DecisionHealth Staff

Practices will have a new ICD-10-CM code to report for post COVID-19 cases starting Oct. 1.

To avoid suit over patient violence, assess and improve security – and document it

07/19/2021

by: Roy Edroso

Legal action from a hospital resident attacked and injured by a patient is a reminder that health care employers have a legal duty to protect their workers. By documenting good-faith efforts to do so, clinics and other facilities can protect themselves, too.

Expert: Surprise billing rules’ explanation of benefits demands will prove challenging

07/19/2021

by: Roy Edroso

The rules on surprise billing that started rolling out from federal agencies in July are expected to lead to more reporting responsibilities for your practice in the coming months, a regulatory expert tells Part B News.

Mismatched BAAs and services agreements create legal snarls

07/19/2021

by: Marla Durben Hirsch

Make sure the terms in your business associate agreements (BAA) are consistent with the agreement that outlines the underlying services being provided by the business associate. If the two agreements are not in alignment and your practice later has a dispute with the business associate, a judge will likely decide which term applies, and his decision might not be in your favor.

7 steps to harmonize business associate, services agreements

07/19/2021

by: Marla Durben Hirsch

Inconsistencies between a business associate agreement (BAA) and the underlying services agreement it relates to can create legal headaches for your practice.

Login

User Name:
Password:
Remember me Forgot password
Welcome to the new Part B News Online. If you are a returning user having trouble logging in, please click here.