Practice Management
Last year’s relatively mild flu season is likely indicative of two things: The vaccine produced was a good match for the prevalent strains of influenza, and this year’s season could be a doozy. The latter point would be borne out by history, which shows that “good” flu seasons are most often followed by “bad” flu seasons. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions continues to hammer home the message that early vaccination is …
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Like many insurers, Anthem says it’s had a hard time operating profitably in exchanges under the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or “Obamacare”). Unlike many insurers, it has stuck with its participation despite those woes. If the situation doesn’t improve, though, Anthem says it will probably switch gears and reconsider its offerings for 2018. The company, whose proposed merger with Cigna faces an antitrust challenge by the Justice Department, also says it would issue a request …
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Suneel Dhand, MD has seen the future—and it does not include small desktop gizmos that you have to scroll, click or otherwise manipulate at the risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome. Writing for the blog KevinMD, Dhand says the increasing popularity of devices with touchscreens (ie, smartphones and tablets), and even touch pads on laptop computers, could spell the demise of the traditional mouse. Why does a physician care? Here’s why: Dhand contends that the …
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Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolinas (BCBSNC) says the federal government is trying to run out on a bill that amounts to $147.5 million in overdue risk-corridor payments. The Justice Department counters that the suit—along with several others that revolve around the 3-year-old program—is premature because any payments wouldn’t be due until next year at the earliest. BCBSNC is eager to have its day in court though, and says the government’s defense is …
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Urgent Message: Tobacco-related illness costs the U.S. healthcare system billions in preventable medical expenses, yet many employees of urgent care centers continue to light up. It may be time for your urgent care center to address the issue of employee smoking by offering incentives for smoking cessation. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for Practice Velocity, LLC and is Practice Management Editor of JUCM—The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. A …
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The following chart, based on a study of over 20,000,000 patients’ records in Practice Velocity’s database of patient visits across the United States, illustrates the frequency of influenza diagnoses between January 2010 and October 2016 relative to total urgent care visits that carried an evaluation and management (E/M) code. The period of December through January is the typical peak of the flu season, although in some years flu outbreaks occur somewhat earlier or later. In …
Read MoreCase A 78-year-old man presents to an urgent care center with bilateral knee pain that he has had for 1 week. The pain is worse in his right knee and is worse with ambulation. He says that he has not experienced any recent trauma, but he does note that he has been helping his son move into an apartment. He reports no fever, dizziness, chest pain, or shortness of breath. He has hypertension, for which …
Read MoreCase A 20-year-old previously healthy man presents with sudden onset of substernal chest pressure after completing football practice. His chest pain is nonradiating, nonreproducible, and nonpositional. He does not have associated palpitations, dyspnea, or diaphoresis. He reports that he has not had recent upper respiratory tract infections or contact with ill people. He does not have a history of using alcohol, tobacco, or illicit drugs. He has no family history of sudden cardiac death or …
Read MoreQ. I understand that there will be reductions for x-ray reimbursements from Medicare in 2017. Is this true? A. To give imaging providers an additional incentive to adopt more advanced x-ray technology, Medicare will reduce reimbursement, beginning in 2017, for the technical component (and the technical component of the global fee) in claims submitted for x-rays performed with analog equipment. The cuts will continue in future years for those using computed radiography equipment (Table 1). …
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