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Choosing a Medical Billing Partner: 6 Questions to Ask First, This Article Gives You an Idea of What a Provider is Looking For.

By Sherri Dumford, CHBME, MBA Taken from Physician's Practice

In my almost 30 years of experience in healthcare billing, I’ve never seen more rapid change than today. Ever-evolving laws, regulations, and new reimbursement models make it imperative for shrewd physicians and administrators to align themselves with the most astute billing professionals to keep the practice healthy.

Here are the top six questions I advise practice leaders to ask themselves before selecting a billing partner.

1. What qualifications and credentials should I look for?

The billing firm must have policies and procedures that maximize the efficiencies of practice work flow and minimize the time it takes to get paid. In the wake of the HIPAA Omnibus Rule, billing companies also must have a rigorous compliance program that ensures the privacy, security and confidentiality of protected health information (PHI).

Billing company leaders who orient their staff assiduously and support continuous education, keep their firm and your practice on the cutting edge of industry developments. For instance, billing professionals who have achieved certification in the Certified Healthcare Billing and Management Executive (CHBME) program, offered through the Healthcare Billing & Management Association (HBMA), demonstrate a biller’s commitment to further their education.

2. What stipulations are essential to include in a contract?

An effective contract clarifies the billing company’s scope of work in detail, while specifying your practice’s responsibilities and pledge (e.g., to provide sufficient documentation for billing and authorization for services). Individual stipulations may vary from firm to firm, but should always contain the legal names of responsible parties, effective dates (including termination clauses), service reimbursement parameters, and an explanation of how reimbursements will be calculated, along with compliance requirements and scope of work. As always, whenever entering into a contract, seek legal counsel and do not be tempted to use a generic template as your final contract.

3. How can the billing partner help measure the health of my practice?

As reimbursement models continue to evolve, you will rely on your medical billing company to provide you with expert counsel in evaluating not only the health of your organization today, but also to make the appropriate preparations to meet future needs. Choose a billing company experienced in evaluating reimbursement data analytics, as well as one that can assess existing administrative policies, staffing levels, and IT resources so your practice can focus on what it does best— providing quality patient care.

4. What technological capabilities can I expect from a billing company?

Today, billing companies do much more than reimbursements. With their breadth of knowledge and expertise, billing companies may counsel you on the best technology to meet both your needs and regulatory requirements. Their experience with EHRs, practice management and billing systems, and other IT solutions, allows billing companies to integrate systems effectively, regardless of where they originate and reside. Whether you are looking for a new implementation or looking for an upgrade to your existing IT solution, the right billing company will be able to help zero in your focus of certified, respected vendors who have stood the test of time in meeting the clinical, administrative and financial needs of medical practices.

5. How important is it for the billing company to be "connected" to the revenue cycle management industry as a whole?

Because the business of healthcare billing is changing so rapidly, it is critical to partner with a billing firm that is playing an active role in the revenue cycle management industry and is constantly adding to its knowledgebase. You will want to investigate how the billing company is staying current with things like the transition to ICD-10; the use of PQRS (Physician Quality Reporting System) to make quality reporting pay; the types of relationships they have with your local payors; and how they stay abreast of regulatory changes that affect compliance and reimbursement.

As one example, the HBMA is a 700-member strong organization of billing companies that offers numerous educational programs to help members to stay on top of legislative, regulatory, and coding changes.

6. Since ICD-10 is one of the most significant changes the physician community faces, what preparation should I expect from a billing company?

Practices that aren’t prepared for the transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10 may see an immediate hit in revenue on Oct. 1, 2014. It may even serve as a death blow for some. Savvy practices will rely on billing companies that have completed end-to-end testing and have already performed the appropriate training for certified coders and are armed and ready to act in the event reimbursement issues arise due to adjudication issues with payors. This means they are keenly aware of which reimbursements should be based upon contracts, and evaluate any changes in denials or reimbursement trends. These efforts build upon an organization’s ICD-10 proficiency and work to ensure that reimbursement continues to flow to your practice.

Covering the above questions will help you find the best billing partner to help your practice thrive today and remain competitive in the future. But, I'm interested in your thoughts — beyond these six, are there additional questions or areas that should be included? Let me know in the comments section below.
Sherri Dumford, CHBME, MBA, is director of operations and external affairs for the Healthcare Billing and Management Association (HBMA). An established industry veteran, Dumford has worked in healthcare billing for more than 30 years, which includes serving as past president for HBMA. In her current role, she supports all aspects of the HBMA’s daily operations relative to membership, advocacy, and education, in support of HBMA strategic initiatives. E-mail her here. 

Courtesy of Physicians Practice  http://www.physicianspractice.com/blog/choosing-medical-billing-partner-6-questions-ask-first

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How to Start Your Own Medical Billing Service, a Great Stocking Stuffer For the Entrepreneur in Your Family! On Sale! $19.99!

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Is Your Billing Company Registered for HBMA's Free Professional Billing Service Locator Service?

Physician owners and medical practice administrators are already signing up and may be looking for you! Today, the HBMA unveiled the free, fully automated Professional Billing Service Locator (PBSL) service, a platform that provides an efficient way for physician owners and medical practice administrators to easily find a trusted, professional medical billing partner. HBMA developed the offering to help providers with the arduous task of navigating through the thousands of medical billing companies on the market to find a the HBMA member organization that will best meet their specific needs. After registration, the PBSL will immediately identify the specialties, service details, and contact information of the most relevant and qualified medical billing companies in the region that fit a medical practice's specific profile. Finding that perfect match with the right professional billing service will help providers secure appropriate reimbursement for services delivered, achieve timely claims adjudication, and reduce claims denials to lessen days in accounts receivable. To learn more about how to register your billing company into the PBSL directory, visit Professional Billing Service Locator or call 877.640.4262.

http://www.hbma.org/blog/is-your-billing-company-registered-for-hbmas-free-professional-billing-service-locator-service

You Need to Adapt in Order to Survive: How Your Medical Billing Service Can Prosper During the Healthcare Industry Chaos

How Your Company Can Prosper During the
Healthcare Industry Chaos

By Patrick Phillips

The healthcare industry is facing a state of complete disorder and confusion: Uncertainty surrounding the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, the looming switch to ICD-10, EHR and "meaningful use" deadlines, hospital acquisitions of physician practices, new HIPAA rules, and Health Insurance Exchanges... the list goes on. It seems like a challenging time for medical billing companies – and it is.

 

The good news is that not only can you prosper, you can bring hope and financial stability to struggling practices and salvage some that would otherwise collapse and shut down (or get swallowed up by a hospital or other acquisition entity). How can you assure your and your clients' continued prosperity and growth?

 

Focus on becoming a full-service revenue cycle management company.
In today's dynamic marketplace, billing companies that do not keep up with the constant changes will be left in the dust by companies that do. You must not only stay current with what is happening in the industry, you need to make alliances with other companies that can provide services to your clients that will help them solve cash-flow challenges beyond just their medical billing. The more services you can offer to your clients, the more you will be perceived as "the expert" who can solve their cash flow problems.

A brief review of the latest issue of Billing will introduce you to vendors that can be valuable to you in assisting your clients with medical coding questions, HIPAA compliance, EHR Meaningful Use attestation, online document management, patient portals, integrated payment channels, patient collections, and other revenue cycle issues. Do not forget that HBMA conferences will introduce you to technology partners that can help you keep up with changes in this dynamic industry.

Make sure you are using a billing system that is fully integrated with an EHR system.
Many outdated, server-based billing systems are trying to patch together a practice management system with one of the new electronic health record systems designed by a different company or on a different platform. The company that developed the practice management (PM) system creates an interface with an EHR system developed by another company. Chaos generally ensues.

If this is the case with your PM system, you are only asking for headaches and a possible loss of clientele. EHR companies are dropping by the wayside every day. Some of them are also server-based. Trying to get them to work together with billing software is like using "bubble gum and bailing wire" and will only lead to ongoing issues in your company. Two different companies, with two groups of programmers, trying to keep all the different parts of both systems running smoothly is almost impossible and can lead to turmoil in your company.

As painful as it may seem now, it may be a good idea to begin looking for a billing system that is totally integrated with an EHR system. That means that it was designed from the ground up by the same programmers in the same company. There are such systems available, and most of them are cloud-based (accessed securely 24/7 through a browser via the Internet).

Anything less than total integration of the two systems could be a disaster waiting to happen. Start your research now and find a system that will take you into the future, especially with any new clients you bring on. And, as part of your due diligence, make sure there is a way to import the data from your current system into the new system (at least the patient demographics). Then, begin to educate your current clients on why they need to start using an EHR, if they are not already, and why they might need to use a system that is fully integrated with your billing system.

Look for a system that has a way to electronically communicate with insurance company databases. You need one that checks for eligibility and automatically imports the patient data directly from the insurance company's database to create new patient charts. This will save you hours of data input and will help you keep employee costs under control. It will also prevent you from submitting claims that are sure to be rejected because the patient was not eligible for the service and it will keep the practice from spending time seeing patients that insurances will not cover. This will increase your revenue for that practice and will eliminate a large number of claim rejections as well.

 

Keep up with changes in the industry.
I can predict the success you are going to have in your business – and in life in general – if you will tell me just two things: the people you associate with and the books (and periodicals) that you read. Do not get bogged down in the details of your billing business. You need to set aside time to attend industry conferences at least once a year and to read industry newsletters and books.

The person who does not read is no better off than the person who cannot read, so set aside time each week to read about our industry and keep up with the constant changes. Change is what life itself is based on, and if you are willing to change along with the industry, you and your clients will prosper.

Do not assume you will have your current clients forever.
You won't. Things change in medical practices: staff turnover, new policies and procedures, new government rules and regulations, competition, updated technology, and the marketplace itself. All these things can cause you to lose a client from time to time. You must always be marketing.

Whether you realize it or not, your competition in this industry is not just other medical billing companies. The practice itself is your biggest competition. All it would take is for a new office manager to come into one of your practices and decide that they would rather not outsource their billing: they think they can do it themselves more efficiently and more economically. You must keep reselling your clients on your efficiencies and on your cost savings versus doing the billing themselves internally. Provide them with revenue reports that delineate what percentage of billed dollars (expected) are actually being collected. Show them you are the expert in this industry by producing and providing to them a professional newsletter with articles that show that you keep up with the changes in the industry. HBMA has a newsletter you can purchase and tailor with your company logo (www.hbma.org). 

Take the practice administrator (or the doctor) to lunch from time to time and show them printed reports that illustrate the revenue collections from both insurance providers and patients. Hold "Lunch 'n Learns" on a regular basis with your clients to bring them up to date on what is happening in the medical industry. Position yourself as the expert. People want to do business with "the expert" in every field.

When you buy a home, you do not want the new real estate agent: you want the guy or gal who has sold 100+ homes. When you look for a CPA, you do not want one who just hung out his or her shingle: you search for one who pays less than double digits of their own taxes and has a number of clients who they service. The same is true of a doctor's office. They want to feel that they are dealing with the company that can bring in every last dime that is due to the practice.

Continue to network with other business people in the community and join your local BNI group or chamber of commerce. Get out once a week and let people know you can solve the cash crunch for doctors and help them build their practices through your contacts.

Set up an automated way of keeping in touch with everyone you come in contact with who is a prospective client. Let them know that you are the only company that they should do business with. When it comes time for them to decide to outsource their billing, you are the only choice that makes sense. People do not buy when you are ready to sell – they buy when they are feeling the pain. Be at the top of their list when they decide it is time for change.

Remind your current doctors and office administrators that you are looking to build your business. Assuming you have done a good job for them, ask them for a referral. You would be surprised as to how many billing company owners never ask their clients for referrals. Do not just ask for the name of someone. Ask your client to pick up the phone and call the other doctor or office administrator and tell them how pleased they are with your billing service and that they think it would be in their interest to meet with you.

You can shrivel up and die in this ever-changing industry, or you can make the choice to grow and prosper, starting right now!

 

Medical Billing Disputes: Finding Peace between Patients and Billers : Don't Be This Billing Service!

Your front-office staff is great. They check patients in, smile, schedule, and do everything right. The doctor or nurse sees the patient, listening intently for any clue that might help them solve whatever the problem. The patient leaves happy.

Then the bill arrives. The patient has a coinsurance they need to pay, and are very willing to do so, but it appears something has gone wrong with the insurance payment amount. They call the number on the statement to pay the bill, and get a not-so-friendly customer service representative. Things go downhill from there. A month later, the patient comes back into the office beside themselves, acting like a lunatic waving a bill around. Once you bring them into a private room away from the rest of your patients, you find out the problem: The patient has been fighting with your billing company for over a month to get a better understanding of what has happened.

This scenario happens far too many times. The office provides excellent service and the billing department — not so much. What is a practice manager to do? First, try to identify the actual problem and go from there.

Here are some tips on conflict resolution between your practice, the patient, and the billing department.

1. Identify the person in the billing department who the patient has been dealing with. Find out the rest of the story, as it could be the patient only had one interaction with the billing department, and the employee could have been trying to explain that the bill was part of the patient deductible and coinsurance. When patients don't want to hear what they don't understand, they start to argue.

2. Once you have a clear understanding of the problem, find out where the customer service portion of the patient experience failed. If it was lack of follow up with the patient or if the representative was indeed rude, that should be addressed with the billing department's manager.

3. Take this opportunity to create a plan with the billing manager to address overall customer service opportunities within the department and how you would like a very specific level of customer service to your patients.

This should include:

• Friendly customer service representatives for your patients.
• If the patient is not satisfied with the level of service, they should be allowed to speak with the manager immediately.
• Follow up with patients. If the representative says, "Let me call you back on that," a phone call best be made within a specific time frame; in most cases 24 hours in a good rule of thumb.
• • If your office is unsure how an insurance is going to pay a claim and the patient needs to be seen multiple times for similar treatments, it is reasonable to ask the billing department to follow a claim from beginning to end. They can then call and let your office know if the insurance is imposing a copay, coinsurance, or deductible for the patient to pay. Your office can then inform the patient. Good billing departments can get most claims through to the major payers in less than two weeks.

Overall, the billing department is part of your team. They need to be on-board with your requests and policies. If you find there is a lack in this area, it's time to set up a meeting and set some standards for them. You are their customer and should be treated as such.

Article By P.j. Cloud-moulds of Physicians Practice http://www.physicianspractice.com/blog/medical-billing-disputes-finding-peace-between-patients-and-billers?GUID=2E8F906E-CDE7-43B7-AC93-7066F83372C7&rememberme=1&ts=24092013

How to Code, Negotiate After-Hours Reimbursement at Your Practice

There are codes in the CPT® code book to report services a physician provides during "nontraditional" hours. If you prove that it’s in the payer’s best interest, third-party insurers may allow additional reimbursement for after-hours services.

Medicare and payers that strictly follow CMS guidelines will not pay additional reimbursement for after-hours services. However, you might succeed with private payers in negotiating payment for after-hours codes as part of a contractual agreement, especially if you use savings potential as leverage. Have your negotiator make it clear to the insurer’s representative that you’ll willingly send patients to the emergency department (ED) instead of offering in-office after-hours services, but that ED services can cost as much as 10 times more than comparable physician services.

To further demonstrate cost savings, you could also start billing all applicable after-hours codes for your practice. Over time, you will have compiled an archive of claimed charges, which you can use to show the insurer how often you provide these services. In this report to the insurer, consider adding data on the much higher price of ED visits for the same services.

Know the Codes

Based on the CPT®/AMA guidelines, you may report 99050 — Services provided in the office at time other than regularly scheduled office hours, or days when the office is closed (e.g., holidays Saturday or Sunday), in addition to basic service — for any service provided in the office at a time when the practice would normally be closed (e.g., weekends or evenings). Code 99050 is reported in addition to the code for the basic service.

If your practice already maintains regular hours on evenings, weekends, or holidays, and you provide a service during those times, you should skip 99050 and use 99051 — Service(s) provided in the office during regularly scheduled evening, weekend, or holiday office hours, in addition to basic service.

If a 24-hour facility requests that your physician provide a redeye or early-bird service, AMA guidelines allow you to claim 99053 — Service(s) provided between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. at 24-hour facility, in addition to basic service, in addition to the basic service. Code 99053 can be used whether the provider is already at the facility, or if the physician has to make a special trip to care for the patient. The code 99053 can only be used if the service provided occurs at a 24-hour facility, such as an ambulatory surgical center (POS 24), urgent care facility (POS 20), or emergency department (POS 23).

Emergency department physicians may report 99053 for services rendered between the hours of 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. The American College of Emergency Physicians fully supports this use of 99053, stating that this code is appropriate for late-night services, "especially given the nighttime practitioner availability costs typically incurred by all medical practices, including emergency medicine."

G. John Verhovshek, MA, CPC, is the managing editor for AAPC's publications. He has written, co-written, and edited dozens of coding and compliance resource manuals, including the Part B Survival Guide (1st edition) and The Official CPC Certification Study Guide (1st edition). E-mail him here.

Article By G. John Verhovshek, MA, CPC http://www.physicianspractice.com/coding/how-code-negotiate-after-hours-reimbursement-your-practice?GUID=2E8F906E-CDE7-43B7-AC93-7066F83372C7&rememberme=1&ts=03102013

Interview: How to Start A Medical Billing Service - Business Opportunities Weblog

Interview: How to Start A Medical Billing Service - Business Opportunities Weblog

Top 10 E-mail Etiquette Tips

Who do you and your colleagues communicate with via e-mail at your medical practice? At a minimum, it is likely you communicate with patients, vendors, and each other. Is there anyone that you exclusively (or almost exclusively) communicate with via e-mail?

E-mail is a wonderful tool, but unlike phone or face-to-face communication, the medium poses challenges when it comes to conveying the tone you are trying to imply. E-mail can also be damaging, especially when an e-mail is misunderstood. Here are 10 tips to help keep the perception of your e-mails on point.
1. Keep e-mails brief and to the point. Make your most important point first, and then provide supporting details if necessary. Paragraphs should be short and easy to read.
2. Watch your tone. Without the nonverbal cues of face-to-face conversation, your tone can get lost in the translation of an e-mail. The more to the point you can be the better. Also using words like "please" and "thank you" can go a long way. 
3. Don't assume the tone or intent of an e-mail you receive. In the same respect that you should watch your tone, never assume the intent or tone of an e-mail you receive either. It is always best to ask specifically the intent of the e-mail, as we all know what happens when you assume. 
4. Don't reply when irritated or angry. When sending and receiving e-mail, the best solution when you feel offended is simply not to be offended (pretty good general life advice too). You are likely getting worked up over something that is simply an error in the translation of the tone. If you find yourself reading an e-mail and becoming irritated, step away for a minute and calm down before replying.
5. One e-mail per subject. Even when you are e-mailing patients, it is best to send one e-mail per subject so that it is easily referenced again by the subject line. If you find yourself sending three or more e-mails, consider sending one e-mail with multiple attachments rather than including pages of text in the body of a single e-mail.
6. Use zip files when sending attachments. Also make sure that the receiving person will be able to open the file. PDF is often the best format for documents; most systems can open it.
7. Always use "if –then" options. Using "if-then" options cuts down on the back and forth of e-mailing, especially for appointment times. For example:
"Can you bring Mary in for a follow-up appointment at 3 p.m. on Wednesday? If not then please give me three additional days and time frames you could bring her in (For example, Wednesday before 10 a.m. or Friday after 1 p.m.)."
 8. Avoid typing in all small caps or all upper caps. This can make your e-mail look lazy (small caps) or like you are shouting (all upper caps). This is one of the most basic rules. However, with so many people communicating from their mobile devices, it often falls by the wayside.
9. Limit text formatting. Just because your e-mail service or program offers text formatting options doesn't mean you should use them. Avoid underlining unless it is a link. Various fonts and colors can make the e-mail difficult to read, and can often times seem unprofessional.
10. Always sign off with care. Use words such as "Thanks," "Sincerely," "Best regards," for closing e-mails. This is polite, respectful, and conveys a nice tone.
Be sure to use care and common sense when using e-mail as a tool to communicate with your colleagues, staff, and patients.

Article By Audrey "Christie" Mclaughlin, RN
http://www.physicianspractice.com/blog/top-10-e-mail-etiquette-tips-your-medical-practice?GUID=2E8F906E-CDE7-43B7-AC93-7066F83372C7&rememberme=1&ts=03092013

EHR Data Interface Issues for the Third Party Biller

 

Is the Industry Moving Away From Your Billing Model?

An article by Ron Sterling taken from the May/June issue of HBMA Billing.

Third party billers face a variety of business and technical challenges in interfacing with electronic health records (EHR) and other systems. Indeed, some of the initiatives in the healthcare industry will continue to complicate the establishment and maintenance of data interfaces for the foreseeable future.

Business Challenges

If you go back a few years before Meaningful Use, there were over 1,200 practice management system (PMS) vendors and a couple of hundred EHR vendors. During that time, the third party billers and/or practice management system vendors had the access to, and the attention of, physicians who needed to get their claims out of the door and paid. Consequently, it was the EHR vendors that would offer to accommodate interfaces with medical billing systems. Indeed, a variety of PMS vendors touted their systems as a gateway to a variety of EHR options for their physician clients.
Today, newly introduced integrated PMS/EHR products and EHR acquisitions by PMS vendors and vice versa have led to fewer, if any, billing system options for many EHR buyers. From integrated systems (that by design and business model do not interface with other products), to vendors that will not interface with other options, many vendors have established themselves as one stop shops for medical billing, EHR solutions, and, in some cases, RCM services. Indeed, some vendors have exclusive or "preferred" clearinghouse relationships for the handling of standard HIPAA transactions. In essence, more and more vendors want to position themselves as the only source for healthcare software solutions and services.

That is not to say that there are not EHR vendors who are eager to interface with a variety of practice management systems. However, the industry is moving to fewer interfaced solutions and more integrated offerings. Indeed, the majority of "new" solutions are integrated PMS/EHR offerings.

Healthcare Industry Changes

Related to the business challenges, the Meaningful Use initiative will affect interface strategies for all PMS and EHR products. For example, Stage 2 Meaningful Use core (required) measures include secure messaging with patients and providing electronic access to patient medical information. In most cases, this requires the use of a patient portal.

Patient portals can provide both medical billing and clinical interactions with patients. As importantly, most patient portals are designed to interface with one product line of medical billing and EHR products (such as Centricity PMS/EHR or NextGen EPM/EHR). Patient portals are not typically designed to interface with one vendor's practice management software containing billing data and a different vendor's EHR that houses clinical information. If the patient portal is separately interfaced with a PMS from one vendor and an EHR from a different vendor, the patient portal may not "know" how to properly route the message. In practice, however, patients may exchange secured messages with the practice on both billing and clinical issues.

A strategy that may include a separate patient portal for clinical issues and one for medical billing purposes presents a variety of operational challenges, including coordinating patient access and even accurately routing information. As importantly, separate patient portals will undermine support for the Patient Centered Medical Home and Accountable Care Organizations. For example, a patient who accesses the medical billing patient portal may not be reminded about a clinically-driven patient service issue.

Technical Challenges

Most interfaces are based on the Health Level 7 (HL7) structure. However, various aspects of HL7 are open to interpretation by vendors. Indeed, a variety of PMS and EHR vendors do not strictly support the HL7 standard. For example, some vendors use general HL7 messages instead of designated HL7 messages to send information. In other instances, the information in a message is not placed in the expected place but in a comment or supplemental area. Indeed, some vendors do not use the standard code sets, and instead use text fragments. In each case, the effort to establish the interface may require a painstaking evaluation of the vendor's "HL7" implementation.

Even after achieving success, the interface may have to change to address evolving coordination of information requirements between the medical billing and clinical record functions. For example:

• The Meaningful Use Stage 1 measures require ethnicity and race information that is commonly captured in the PM systems but is needed by the EHR to track provider performance and qualify for the EHR incentive payments from Medicare or Medicaid.
• Meaningful Use Stage 2 will require sharing of contact information and email addresses.
• The HIPAA omnibus rules will affect the information needed to track HIPAA Privacy and Disclosure as well as support exchanges with patients. As a practical matter, most medical billing and EHR interfaces do a poor job of coordinating HIPAA privacy and disclosure status for patients.

In light of these increasingly complex business and technical challenges to interfacing medical billing and EHR products, third party billers may need to establish their own preferred relationships with EHR vendors. However, such relationships will be under increasing competitive pressure and user demands to provide a more coordinated approach to patient service and provider relationships.

Right, wrong, or indifferent, the healthcare industry is moving towards comprehensive solutions to meet patient service challenges and optimize provider performance. Consequentially, the PMS/EHR vendors are addressing those needs. A myriad of changes that affect physician relationships with patients and the expectations of patients and payors will complicate the use of interfaces with EHR products and inhibit the efficiencies needed to manage patient care and service. As importantly, interfaced systems may complicate reporting for quality, operational, and management purposes.

Therefore, interfacing between PMS and EHR systems may present a tactical solution to meet physician needs in these relatively early stages of the transition to EHRs, but present a strategic challenge to address evolving healthcare business and patient service models. Third party billing organizations need to recognize these business and service issues in order to provide a clear strategic path for how your services and products will evolve to meet the new demands that your clients are facing.

Courtesy of: http://www.hbma.org/news/public-news/n_ehr-data-interface-issues-for-the-third-party-biller

Three Mindsets for Growing Your Business and Sales

(An article by Ron Karr, taken from the July/August issue of HBMA Billing)

If I ask you not to think about pink elephants, what will you think about? Be honest! You're thinking about pink elephants! But why would you, when I asked you not to?

The answer is simple: the mind cannot process the negative. If you are about to go into an account hoping to not lose the sale, what do you think is going to happen? You will lose the sale. The opposite is thinking about the deal you are going to close. Thinking about what you want to achieve, instead of what you don't want to have happen, makes all the difference in the world when it comes to your success in sales. Thinking about closing the deal puts you in an entirely different mindset that allows you to have the right conversation to make it happen.

Your mindset is the difference between closing more business and losing it. We have identified three critical mindsets that top producers use to grow their business. They are:

1. Creation vs. competition
2. Openings vs. closings
3. Alliances vs. lone ranger

Creation vs. Competition

Too many sales executives go into sales calls trying to beat their competition instead of creating better results for their customers. To build a value proposition that is second to none, you must concentrate on generating better results rather than competing against the processes already employed by the client. This is what Scott Nadell, Director of Sales for a third party billing company in New York, does.

Scott called me and wanted to know how he could close more deals. It seemed as though every time he walked into a practice, the walls would go up and office managers and doctors would be rude and unwilling to listen. Scott was going in to tell them how great his system was and how he could save them time and money. He was a threat to peoples' jobs and nobody wanted to deal with him. Sound familiar?

Scott changed his approach from competing against what they are currently doing to having conversations on how partnerships with his company can produce better results. He created different mindsets that enabled his audience to want to hear what he had to say without feeling threatened.
 

Openings vs. Closings

After switching his mindset to one of creation, Scott then looked at how he presented his position when introducing himself to prospects. Instead of telling them how great he was, he provided actual statistics on how much money his company had successfully billed and collected for its clients. He positioned his company as a valued resource that helps practices increase their profits and revenues through an efficient billing and collection system.
But here is the catch! Scott did not do this in a one-sided conversation. He got the doctors and practice managers to talk first about where they wanted to take their practices and what goals they had identified for their billing systems. Once he figured out where their struggles were, he then presented his systems and results in the context of what was important to each particular practice. When the managers and doctors heard his pitch, they felt like it was fully customized to address their issues.
 

Alliances vs. Lone Rangers

Scott then decided to take the same approach when it came time to creating alliances with other parties, such as attorneys and accountants. He realized that being introduced to a new prospect by one of their trusted advisors greatly reduced the amount of time it took to gain his prospect's attention and interest. If your attorney says that you need to speak to a service provider who is going to help your business, you are going to have that conversation.

Scott always knew that this was important. What he did not realize is that you need to treat each alliance as a client. In other words, don't just ask them for referrals. Do what you do with the doctors: ask about where they are trying to take their businesses, then discuss how partnering with you can help them get there.

Today, Scott and his company are enjoying great results from operating with these three mindsets. They are closing new accounts and creating alliances with influencers in their industry who are opening a lot of doors for them.

Scott started seeing results initially in the quality of the conversations he was having, which led to more opportunities and eventually more business.

What mindsets do you operate from? For doctors to switch third party billing companies or to go to a third party biller, they need to hear a compelling reason. That only comes when you operate from the right mindset. 

Courtesy of: http://www.hbma.org/news/public-news/n_three-mindsets-for-growing-your-business-and-sales

Choosing the Right Clearinghouse - Five Essential Qualities

An article by Bill Marvin from the July/August issue of HBMA Billing (www.hbma.org).
In the healthcare billing industry, the clearinghouse you work with has a huge impact on your business. The more efficiently your clearinghouse processes and returns your information, the faster you and your clients will get paid and the more payments you will collect. Therefore, knowing the right qualities to look for in a clearinghouse is crucial to the success of your business.

To gain insight into what billing services need from a clearinghouse, I interviewed Kevin Milam, owner of a company that does billing, consulting, and accrediting for clients across several states. We came up with five essential qualities to look for when researching clearinghouses to ensure that you are making the best decision for your business and your clients.

1. Knowledgeable and Immediate Customer Support

Having access to a knowledgeable, responsive customer service team is critical in any industry. For a billing service, waiting multiple days for an issue to be resolved can result in delayed payment, so choose a clearinghouse that allows you to log an inquiry 24/7 and that will respond to you within 24 hours. How can you tell for sure if a clearinghouse offers high-quality customer support? "Generally, if you receive immediate acknowledgement and responses to inquiries while you're researching a clearinghouse, you likely will receive the same treatment as a customer," says Kevin. Also, review the clearinghouse's commitment to customer service hours and responses in its contract. In most contracts, these performance elements are known as Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and are contractual commitments, sometimes with penalties.

2. Quick Claim Responses (Claim Status)

Once you submit claims to your clearinghouse, you should know within minutes which claims went through and which claims need to be corrected and resubmitted. "The longer you have to wait for claim responses, the longer it takes before you can correct any errors," says Kevin. "This delays cash flow for you and your clients and potentially leaves money on the table." Clearinghouses that tie claim status back to individual claims will save you time in the submission process.

3. Consistency and Accountability with 835s

You should receive an 835 and payment within a consistent timeframe so that you can post and reconcile your payments quickly. "With clearinghouses I've used in the past, I have received 835s weeks or even months after receiving the payments," says Kevin. "There was no consistency." When you can count on receiving 835s and payments within a day or two of each other, you and your staff won't waste time tracking down delayed 835s or payments for posting and reconciliation. Furthermore, the payment trace numbers or check numbers should re-associate with the 835s so that you can reconcile the payments more efficiently.

4. Efficient Claim Information

"It's not enough to have all of the claim information in your system," says Kevin. "You need to be able to use that information efficiently across multiple staff members at the same time." For example, if you can view a summary of all claim statuses on an 835, your staff can immediately identify which payments to post and which claims to reprocess. Additionally, your staff should have the ability to update the claim statuses as they reprocess claims or post payments, so that they don't duplicate any work done on the 835. This enables you to track all claim activity from a summary report or dashboard without wasting time looking at each individual claim.

5. Usability

For a billing service, it's key to be able to train your staff to use your system, especially as your staff changes or expands. Choose a clearinghouse with easy-to-use features like human readable claim responses and 835s; detailed and customizable reports hosted in a secure, private cloud; and a minimal number of clicks required to complete your workflow. "The steps required to process claims should make sense," says Kevin. "If you can't easily train your staff to use your system, it won't benefit you."

In addition, it is important to choose a clearinghouse that is accredited by the Electronic HealthCare Network Accreditation Commission (EHNAC). Some states and many payers will require you to use an EHNAC-accredited clearinghouse.

When you research clearinghouses, be sure to speak with existing customers, whom you can ask about each of these qualities. As the industry pushes for greater efficiency, it becomes even more important for your business to save time and money. Working with a clearinghouse that has all five of these qualities will help you to simplify your day-to-day processes, increase your cash flow, and help your business and your clients' businesses thrive.

 

Courtesy of: http://www.hbma.org/news/public-news/n_choosing-the-right-clearinghouse-five-essential-qualities

 

Opportunities to Expand and Keep Your Business

By Steven Peltz, from the Jan/Feb issue of HBMA Billing

As a medical practice consultant, one the first areas of a medical practice that I evaluate is the billing department or billing company of a practice that has hired me. In my capacity as the president-elect of the National Society of Certified Healthcare Business Consultants (NSCHBC), I have had informal discussions with HBMA President Don Rodden, CHBME, about the consulting services that billing companies provide to practices, sometimes without understanding how important their role is to the practice.

I was introduced to HBMA by Government Relations Committee Chairman, Barry Reiter, CHBME. He and I have discussed the constant chaos that the healthcare delivery system is in and identified some of the opportunities that arise from that state. You may not know it, but many of you are already consulting, and if you have not set up your engagement contracts wisely, you are missing out both on revenue and having your client understand and appreciate all the value you bring to the practice. As practices merge and are acquired by hospitals, it is a good idea for your company to offer more than one line of service. Here are a few examples of what I do; you may want to consider adding these services to your company if you do not already offer them.

Over the years, I have established a benchmark of what a practice's accounts receivable (A/R) should look like. It is not cast in stone and is not fail proof, but it is a simple measuring tool that I use. I take the A/R temperature of all new clients and put it on a bar graph, then compare it to my benchmarks (see page 24). I then demonstrate to the potential client that by using the graph, their money is worth less the longer it is owed to the practice. I point out that either their billing company or billing department is not meeting the standard. I also break down the front end of the billing process and identify disconnects in the data collection process, such as: poorly trained staff, lack of reconciliation, monitoring, and the final decision with respect to collections.

Reducing the lifetime of debts that your company must collect begins at the point of service. Collecting co-pays at the time of each practice visit reduces postage, cuts billing staff time, and increases cash flow. Increasing the consistency of this front end collection means training the practice's staff to train the patients. For example, the front end staff may say to the patient, "Your co-pay today is $20" and then stop and wait. A more effective script for collecting co-pays may be, "Your co-pay today is $20, and we accept cash, checks, and credit cards. How would you like to pay?" A subtle but important difference, and while it will not work 100% of the time, it will result in increased revenue. Then, tell your client that you will monitor the success of their front office staff in collecting co-pays and refresh the front staff's training a few times a year. Finally, track the front staff collections on a monthly (or less frequent, but consistent) schedule and meet with your client enough times for your client to develop trust in you as a part of the management team.

When patients call to schedule appointments, do the front desk staff members ask for enough information to check insurance eligibility and acquire authorizations, when appropriate, before the visit?

Is there a daily, weekly, or monthly close that reconciles the cash, personal checks, credit card receipts, and insurance checks with the end-of day and end-of-week computer report and the bank statement? This is a simple way to make sure all the funds go into the bank and not into someone's pocket.

Does the office manager or billing department / company supervisor produce a monthly report that compares the charges and collections of the past month with the same month last year and two months before? This will spot and identify trends before they become problems.
During the first few meetings with your client, be prepared to bring something to the discussion that demonstrates the depth and scope of your knowledge and how your expertise will add to the success of the practice. For example, each year Medicare changes their codes; you could explain which, if any, impact the practice. If it is a primary care practice, establish a referral-based report. Identify how many dollars are sent out of the practice and to what specialties. Are there ways to recapture some of those dollars? Is the PCP or the specialist asking enough questions and documenting enough to code one level higher, if appropriate? I usually tell the owners(s) that the practice needs a preventative audit at least once every year and especially after a new provider is hired. When they ask why, I give them examples of other practices that have had to write checks back to payers.

When your client brings in a new provider, do you offer to credential the provider or bring in someone who can? Do you discuss ancillary sources of revenue that other practitioners use that can also be applied to that practice?

You probably already do between 80% and 100% of the above suggestions, but does the client understand how these services impact their practice? The point is whether your client knows that you provide these services. Yes, I know that they do not want to pay more for services that they think should be included, but that is not a reason to forgo informing them of all you do. Enhancing the services that you offer discourages clients from shopping for competing providers – it is much less expensive to keep a client than it is to get a client. Also importantly, by enhancing your services, you become more appealing to potential new clients when you make sales calls and offer to analyze their operational efficiency.

As a consultant, I either know the answer to the question or where to get it. You should be no different. With the constant change in the healthcare delivery system, you need to be constantly enhancing your product and empowering your clients with more opportunities.

 Courtesy of: http://www.hbma.org/news/public-news/n_a-reminder-opportunities-to-expand-and-keep-your-business

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"New" CMS-1500: WCMS-1500CS-12 Date of Implimentation Unknown (as of August 2013)

1500 Health Insurance Claim Form Change Log 6/17/2013 
The following is the list of changes between the 1500 Claim Form 08/05 version and the 02/12 version.

 

Header: The barcode was removed.

Header: The language “PLEASE DO NOT STAPLE IN THIS AREA” was removed from the left-hand side.

Header: The rectangle with “1500” was added in black ink to the left-hand side.

Header: The title “HEALTH INSURANCE CLAIM FORM” was moved from the lower, right-hand side to the left-hand side.

Header: The language “APPROVED BY NATIONAL UNIFORM CLAIM COMMITTEE 08/05” was added to the left-hand side.

Header: The language “TEST VERSION – NOT FOR OFFICIAL USE” was added to the right-hand side. This language will be removed when the form is approved by OMB.

Box 1: “TRICARE” was added above “CHAMPUS”.

Box 1: Under CHAMPVA, “VA File #” was changed to “Member ID#”.

Box 17a: The box was split in half length-wise.

Box 17a: This area was shaded. This box will accommodate other ID numbers.

Box 17a: Two vertical lines were added. This field will accommodate a two byte qualifier for other ID numbers.

Box 17b: This field was added.

Box 17b: Two vertical lines were added with the “NPI” label. This field will accommodate the NPI number.

Box 21: The lines after the decimal point in items 1, 2, 3, and 4 were extended to accommodate four bytes.

Box 24: The line with the alpha indicators was removed. The alpha indicators were moved next to the respective titles in the title fields.

Box 24: The line numbers to the left of Box 24 were increased in size and centered with each line.

Box 24: Each of the six lines were split length-wise and shading was added to the top portion of each line. This area is to be used for the reporting of supplemental information.

Box 24: Vertical line separators on each of the six lines have been removed from the shaded area,               except for the lines before Boxes 24I and 24J.

Box 24C: “Type of Service” was removed. This field is now titled “EMG”.

Box 24D: The field became wider by three bytes.

Box 24D: Shading was added vertically between “CPT/HCPCS” and “MODIFIER”.

Box 24D: Vertical lines were added in the unshaded “MODIFIER” section to accommodate four                  sets of two bytes.

Box 24E: The title was changed from “DIAGNOSIS CODE” to “DIAGNOSIS POINTER”.

Box 24E: The field was decreased by three bytes.

Box 24G: This field was increased by one byte.

Box 24H: This field was decreased by one byte.

Box 24I: The title was changed from “EMG” to “ID. QUAL.”.

Box 24I: A horizontal line was added length-wise across the field separating the shaded and unshaded portions of the field.

Box 24I: The label “NPI” was added in the unshaded portion of the field.

Box 24J: The title was changed from “COB” to “RENDERING PROVIDER ID. #”. 1500 Claim                            Form Change Log – 11/29/05

Box 24J: A dotted horizontal line was added length-wise across the field separating the shaded and unshaded portions of the field. The NPI number is to be reported in the unshaded field. An other ID number can be reported in the shaded field.

Box 24K: This field, “RESERVED FOR LOCAL USE”, was removed.

Box 32: Boxes 32a and 32b were added at the bottom.

Box 32a: This field was added to accommodate reporting of the NPI number and is indicated by the shaded label of “NPI”.

Box 32b: This shaded field was added to accommodate the reporting of other ID numbers.

Box 33: Parentheses were added after the title to indicate the location for reporting the telephone number.

Box 33: Boxes 33a and 33b were added at the bottom.

Box 33a: The title of this field was changed from “PIN#” to “a.”.

Box 33a: A shaded label of NPI was added to the box to indicate the reporting of the NPI number.

Box 33b: The title was changed from “GRP#” to “b.” to accommodate the reporting of other ID numbers.

Box 33b: The field was shaded.

Footer: The language “NUCC Instruction Manual available at: www.nucc.org” was added to the left-hand side.

Footer: The OMB approval numbers were removed and the language “OMB APPROVAL                 PENDING” was added. The numbers will be added after approval has been received by OMB.

Back: The following language was added in the last line at the bottom of the form: “This address     is for comments and/or suggestions only. DO NOT MAIL COMPLETED CLAIM  FORMS TO THIS ADDRESS.”

 

Courtesy of HMBA

Section 408 Trusts – The Tax Shelter Every Business Owner Should Use - HBMA - Healthcare Billing and Management Association for 1st and 3rd Party Billers - Medical Billing, Practice Management

By Lee R. Phillips, Esq.- taken from the November/December issue of HBMA Billing.

Every small business owner should use one tax shelter every year. It may mean the difference between retiring comfortably and not retiring at all: a Section 408 trust. A Section 408 trust gives you the ability to earn money, avoid paying tax on it today, transfer it into a savings plan where it grows without a tax, invest it basically anywhere you want, and then only pay the tax when you spend the money years down the road. That is a big deal.

 

For seven years, I wrote a column every month for the Physician's Money Digest. It went out to over 300,000 physicians, and I would get many calls from doctors wanting to know how they could get a little better return on their investment. I always asked one question back: "What's the tax?"

Tax is the most important consideration in an investment. When Congress created 408 trusts in 1974, I am convinced that they did not understand the impact that taxes (or the lack thereof) have on an investment. They never envisioned the impact that 408 tax laws would have on investing. I am sure they only envisioned a little extra money that mom and dad could spend when they got old. They never saw millions of dollars in 408 trusts.

Your advisor may not understand Section 408 of the IRS Code. In fact, your advisor may not be familiar with 408 trusts at all. Ask him or her; if he or she does not know what a 408 trust is, it is time to get a new advisor, because the laws under 408 let you do many neat things - things your advisor may not have told you about.

It is good to have a 408 trust, and you should know how to use it. The way you learn how is by simply studying the law, i.e., Section 408 of the IRS Code. 408 trusts have special rules that allow these trusts to be passed on to your heirs, allowing the investments to continue to grow over their lifetime without a tax. That is a really, really big deal, but the trust has to be handled under specific protocols when you die. Very few advisors follow the protocols.

Section 408 defines something that you know as an IRA. Someone who knows the laws can make your investments sing, but if you do not understand 408 laws, you cannot make your IRA grow nearly as fast. I am not just talking about the rules of putting money in, getting a tax deduction, then taking it out when you are age 59, and the like.

I am talking about being able to have an IRA own real estate, run businesses, pay money out over your lifetime starting at any age, and do lots of other things most people do not know they can do.

Standard IRA vs. Roth IRA

One of the questions people have is whether they should contribute to a standard IRA or a Roth IRA. A standard IRA contribution will give you a tax deduction, and then you pay the tax when the investment is taken out of it.

The tax deduction is a special type of deduction. It is not just a "standard deduction." It actually lowers your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). In fact, it is one of the few things an individual can do to lower their AGI. Always check to see what affect a standard IRA contribution will have on your annual tax return. If the deduction lowers your AGI and puts you in a lower tax bracket, by all means, use a standard IRA that year.

Is there an economic advantage to a standard IRA or a Roth IRA? The following chart runs through a little sequence and shows what would happen if you have earned $5,000 that you want to put into either a Roth IRA or a standard IRA.

Note that you do not get to invest the entire $5,000 into the Roth, because you have to tax the $5,000 before you can put any money into it. The full $5,000 goes into the standard IRA because it is a deductible dollar.

When money comes out of the standard IRA, all of this money has to be taxed. Making the assumption that returns on investments are the same and that you pay a 25 percent tax on the money, you can see that the results of investing in a standard IRA and a Roth IRA are identical. The money you will spend in retirement is the same.

That is a little surprising; because you have always been told that the Roth IRA was the "end all, do all" of investing.

This chart makes one bad assumption: It assumes that the tax rates remain the same throughout the period. Tax rates change a lot. If taxes are going to be higher when you retire, you want to use a Roth IRA. If they are going to be lower, you want to use a standard IRA.

Today, tax rates are at an historic low. Believe it or not, that is true. Taxes are going to go up – way up. I am convinced more than ever that politicians do not understand taxes. Our economy will die when taxes go up, but it is safe to say that the tax rate will be higher when you retire than it is today.

If you know taxes are going up, the Roth really is neat. You may not have a Roth IRA. Many people would love to be putting money into a Roth, but they have never qualified.

If your AGI is over a certain amount (approximately $170,000) in a year, you cannot create or contribute to a Roth IRA in that year. There are many ways to lower your AGI, but you need to start today. Your options are limited at the end of the year.

Inherited IRAs

Your IRA is the most valuable investment that you can leave to your heirs. However, most kids blow their opportunity when they get an "inherited IRA." One of the most important things you can teach your kids is the financial secrets of an inherited IRA.

An IRA can be "stretched" over the lifetime of the person who inherits it. One of the most important financial concepts you can teach your children is the power of an inherited IRA. That cannot be said too many times. It is really important!

Most kids are either ignorant or just naive. As soon as they get their hands on the IRA, they think that it is "free money." They take the money out of the IRA and go to Hawaii. What they do not realize is that is the most expensive trip they will ever take by a factor of ten.

There are many rules to follow, but if you can teach your child to keep the IRA, it will produce income for them for the rest of their life. You know the miracle of compounding interest. Having the IRA growing tax-free over the next generation's life is compounding interest on steroids.
Even a moderate IRA can produce millions of dollars over the next generation's lifetime. If you can leave your IRA to a grandchild and have it grow during the 80-year life of the grandchild, the grandchild will get to spend a great deal of money. It is the best inheritance they can get, but they have to know what to do with it.

You have to teach your heirs to keep the IRAs and not cash them in. Make sure they know how to follow all of the rules so that the inherited IRA can be "stretched" over their lifetimes. The family has to file papers with the IRS and jump through some hoops, but there is no question: it is worth all that effort.

The person who inherits the IRA will have to immediately start taking out required minimum distributions based on his or her own life expectancy. The facts are, even with a conservative investment, the IRA will grow faster than when money is taken out as required minimum distributions.

Note that an IRA is a trust. It should almost never have an estate planning trust as its beneficiary. Remember to always make a "person" the beneficiary. Simply put, an inherited IRA can be a money machine for the person who inherits it. Make sure everybody understands what has to be done to make the machine work.

Section 408 Trusts – The Tax Shelter Every Business Owner Should Use - HBMA - Healthcare Billing and Management Association for 1st and 3rd Party Billers - Medical Billing, Practice Management

Latest Trends and Best Practices for Collecting Healthcare Payments

An article by Bill Marvin, taken from the July/August issue of HBMA Billing (hbma.org)
The healthcare payments industry is growing and changing rapidly, and this change is influencing the way that many in the industry, including billing services and their clients, do business. Data from the 2012 Trends in Healthcare Payments Annual Report shows that as the healthcare payments industry evolves, billing services must take steps to accommodate these changes.
Efficiency, payment best practices, interoperability, and security will be crucial areas to focus on in the future as the industry continues to change and grow. Below are the key market trends featured in the report that identify how billing services can prepare for the future in the healthcare payments industry.

1. Simplify the Payment Experience

Of providers surveyed, 37 percent said that their primary revenue cycle concern is the increase in patient responsibility.
As patient responsibility continues to rise, patients have more influence in the healthcare payments process. By delivering additional channels for consumer payments, billing services and their clients will collect more payments
Of providers surveyed, 83 percent said it took more than one month to collect from a patient after claim adjudication.
Today, billing services send out multiple paper statements and make follow-up phone calls to collect patient payments. Facilitating payments at every patient interaction point will be a key factor in reducing the time and costs to collect.

2. Expand Payment Channels

Of patients surveyed, 72 percent said they would like to pay their healthcare bills online.
It is estimated that U.S. consumers will spend more than $300 billion online in 2016. To collect more payments, billing services and their clients must look to the online payment best practices used in other industries to meet patient payment expectations as consumers.
In addition to leveraging technology, billing services must foster cultural changes among staff and patients to better prepare staff members to collect and for patients to pay. Tools and policies such as prompt pay discounts, staff incentive programs, minimum payment requirements, and scripts to use when discussing payments with patients are effective ways to collect more revenue.

3. Achieve Interoperability to Increase Efficiency

Of providers surveyed, 71 percent said that a lack of system interoperability is a major barrier to health information exchange.
Continuing provider consolidation will drive a greater need for system interoperability. The industry must also focus on administrative interoperability, including payment-related systems and processes. By integrating heterogeneous systems, billing services and their clients will automate more processes, simplify compliance requirements, and streamline employee training.

4. Focus on Data and Security

In the last decade, cloud usage in the U.S. has grown by more than 150 percent.
As billing services deliver more channels for consumer payments, private cloud technology will be crucial to efficiently collect, post, and reconcile all payments. However, cloud usage also presents new risks such as long-term downtime and loss of data during disasters. To protect data in the cloud, billing services must ask cloud vendors about disaster recovery and prevention policies and procedures.
In 2012, 27 percent of all reported data breaches occurred in the healthcare industry.
As patient payments increase, more consumer payment cards and bank accounts are exposed, which greatly increases the risk of a data breach. The financial and reputational costs of a payment card data breach are high and may result in bad publicity and loss of business. To reduce the risk of a breach, billing services should consider implementing methods to ensure payment card security and to meet the Payment Card Industry (PCI) standards more easily. In order to protect sensitive information when collecting payments, organizations will leverage new technology such as encryption at the point of interaction (POI) and prepare for the upcoming mandate around Europay, MasterCard, and Visa (EMV). The new EMV standard requires payment card issuers to include a chip that will add a layer of authentication to go along with the current magnetic strip on the back of cards. The industry is quickly beginning to issue and mandate processing for chip-based cards, including:

• Starting April 1, 2013, banks and financial institutions were required to process EMV chip transactions.
  
• Starting October 1, 2015, liability for counterfeit transactions will shift to merchants when processing an EMV card transaction on non-EMV capable devices. Additional information can be found at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMV.

Article source: 2012 Trends in Healthcare Payments Report, www.instamed.com/trends-in-healthcare-payments-annual-report-2012.