August 9, 2013 Newsletter

ICD-10: It’s Almost Here, Now What?

At a medical convention, I recently attended, I had the pleasure of listening to one of the key note speakers discuss ICD-10. With the changes coming, I wanted to share some of the recommendations she had for medical providers in preparation of the conversion.

1. Prepare”Now”
   Educating the entire staff, not just the coders, needs to be done. Pre-certification staff, doctors, nurses, coders and patient billing should all be well-versed in ICD-10. This will help eliminate codes mismatching on claims, which leads to an increase in denials.
2. Duality of Systems: “Are your payors ready?”
   October 1, 2014, is the compliance date for all providers implementing ICD-10. Will your office have claims outstanding under the ICD-9 coding? Probably…by renegotiating reimbursement contracts with your payors this year, you can assure duality of systems remain in place. In contrast, public payors, such as Medicare, in the state of Wisconsin, didn’t receive an increase in any funding in the last budget to continue the duality of the coding systems.
3. Duality of Systems: “Are you ready?”
   Workman’s Compensation and liability insurance companies aren’t mandated by HIPAA to convert to ICD-10. How will you handle both systems simultaneously? Do you have the ability to run both systems with the current software you have in place? Consult with your payors’ software providers and plan accordingly.
4. TEST, TEST, TEST
   Auditing of doctors’ records should be reviewed by the coders. By reviewing the records, doctors can be given feedback on how they are doing on the new system. In turn, this will decrease denials on future claims. Continuous testing of other departments involved is critical.

Change is coming…will you be ready??

Ruling Allows for Judgments to be Taken Against Trade Name

In the case of Paul Davis Restoration of S.E. Wisconsin Inc. v Paul Davis Restoration of Northeast Wisconsin, 2013 WI 49 (June 4, 2013), the courts decided, for the first time, that a judgment taken against a business by its trade name, rather than the legal entity name, is still enforceable.

The courts held that if the trade name is just another way to refer to, rather than distinguish itself from a legal entity, then the judgment is enforceable.

Watch Out for the Cell Phone Police

With 91% of American adults having a cell phone, changes made to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) have got forward thinking businesses adapting verbiage on forms signed by their customers which allows calls to the customer’s cell phone or to utilize pre-recorded messages.

We previously brought you this information when Finance System of Green Bay, Inc. achieved compliance with the FCC for developing such verbiage.

Interest Rate as of July 1st, 2013

Due to the law passed in November, 2011, it is time to update the interest rate for small claims judgments.

As of July 1, 2013, the interest rate based on the equation prime plus one will continue at 3.25%. Please update your records for future small claims actions you may take.

Upcoming Appearances

Apartment Association of Northeastern Wisconsin 2013 Tradeshow
September 11, 2013 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel – Ashwaubenon, WI

Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin Tradeshow
September 27, 2013 at the Potawatomi Bingo & Casino – Milwaukee, WI

Wisconsin Apartment Association 2013 Tradeshow
October 11-12, 2013 at the Tundra Lodge Resort – Green Bay, WI

Wisconsin Credit Union League Inc., Northeastern Chapter
January 23, 2014 at the Little River Country Club – Marinette, WI