Azalea Health Innovations Friends Newsletter – July 2009
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IN THIS ISSUE
* Welcome
* The Latest on the Meaningful Use of EMRs
* Templates are Legally Dangerous
* Billing Tip: Getting Paid for Smoking Cessation Counseling
* AHI Needs Your Help
* Upcoming Events
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Welcome
Hello to all of our Azalea Health Innovations friends. We hope you enjoy this month’s Newsletter. AHI wishes you a happy and cool summer!
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The Latest on the Meaningful Use of EMRs
The Health IT Policy Committee gave approval to an updated definition of “Meaningful Use.” From a Health Data Management article (http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/meaningful_use-38665-1.html), revisions to the 2011 criteria include:
* Implement one clinical decision support rule relevant to a specialty or a high clinical priority
* Submit claims electronically to payers
* Check insurance eligibility electronically when possible
* Provide patients with timely electronic access to their health information
* Provide patients, upon request, with an electronic copy of their discharge instructions and procedures at the time of discharge
* Require the capability to exchange health information where possible in 2011, with participation in a national health information exchange by 2015
Visit http://healthit.hhs.gov and click on “HealthIT/Recovery” then “Adoption and Meaningful Use” for complete information on Meaningful Use and the revision including a Meaningful Use matrix.
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Templates are Legally Dangerous
Praxis is the only EMR that does not use cumbersome and inflexible templates and actually uses an advanced technology that learns as the physician uses it and documents in their own words! Per Dr Richard Low, CEO and founder of Praxis EMR, “Your templates can actually be subpoenaed during the discovery phase of a malpractice suit. Imagine how pleased a plaintiff’s attorney would be to find that your entire practice could be reduced to a series of structured statements and factoids. Suddenly, the art of medicine is diminished, and you appear as a mere technician forcing your patients into a single mold. For this reason alone, templates are an extremely bad idea.” More on the problems with templates can be found at: http://www.infor-med.com/emr-templates-worst-mistake.htm
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Billing Tip: Getting Paid for Smoking Cessation Counseling
Medical practices treat patients who happen to be tobacco users. What many of these practices don’t know is that you can bill for and get reimbursement for Smoking Cessation Counselling. Tobacco abuse does not have to be the primary reason for visit in order to bill. CPT codes 99406 (TOBACCO USE CESSATION INTERMEDIATE 3-10 MINUTES) and 99407 (TOBACCO USE CESSATION INTENSIVE >10 MINUTES) can be billed to many carriers (including Medicare!) in addition to the office visit code and gets reimbursed at $12-$30 dollars per visit depending on the carrier and time spent counselling the patient. CPT 99406 requires only 3-9 minutes of smoking cessation counselling in order to bill. 99407 is for more intensive counselling that takes longer than 10 minutes. Add a 25 modifier to the office visit in order to get reimbursed for both codes. Also make sure diagnosis 305.1 is on the claim as well.
Example:
CPT
99213-25
99406
DX
305.1 – Tobacco use disorder
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AHI Needs Your Help
At Azalea Health Innovations, we strive to keep our products updated with the latest additions and features that our customers feel are important. If you have a great idea to enhance your user experience, or if you have any ideas that you would like us to know about please let us know about it by emailing us at: info@azaleahealth.com
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Upcoming Events
AHI will be exhibiting at the AAFP Scientific Assembly October 14-17, 2009.
http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/cme/aafpcourses/conferences/assembly.html?FeaturePage=/content/en/home&FeatureLocation=FeatureAds3
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Thank you!
Azalea Health Innovations, Inc.
100 North Patterson Street
Valdosta, GA 31601
Toll Free: 877-777-7686
Local: 229-269-4620
Toll Free Fax: 866-683-8679
Web: http://www.AzaleaHealth.com
Email: info@azaleahealth.com
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