CEP
Today’s reimbursement landscape is loaded with traps and
landmines, all of which will cost the unwary practitioner
money. Dean discusses some of the common pitfalls.
Know when to zig! This article is available for Continuing
Education Unit (CEU) credit.
FUSTRATIONS AND PROBLEMS
For those who accept reimbursement from third parties
(insurance), practice management can be difficult to say
the least. Therefore, it is important to “do your homework”
to keep frustration and problems at the minimal level. This
means taking time, often a significant amount, to ferret out the
information that prevents your billing from processing the first
time.
HIPAA has had some positive effects on the health care
business. The goal was to bring disparate communications
and billing information into a single, cohesive whole. This
has occurred for the most part. There was a time when each
insurance entity used codes peculiar to them and you had
to remember which codes were used for which diagnosis or
procedure. Talk about frustrating!
Now, there is a universal set of codes, and that certainly does
simplify things. Every office has a notebook, a clipboard, or
a rolodex with all the quirks pertaining to a specific carrier.
Then comes ICD-10, with a new and entirely different method
of defining diagnoses. Fortunately, our procedure codes
remained the same. Be thankful for small miracles.
With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
comes more twists and turns. For better or worse, ACA is part
of our universe. We must deal with it for as long as it is around.
Read This Article,
Take Survey to
Earn Continuing
Education Points
The Pedorthic Footcare Association
(PFA) offers Continuing Education Points
(CEPs), approved by the American Board
for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetics
& Pedorthics, Inc. (ABC) and the Board
of Certification/Accreditation (BOC), via
specially designated articles within Current
Pedorthics magazine.
To take advantage of the program,
thoroughly read the adjacent CEU article
and then visit:
www.pedorthics.org and click on the
Continuing Education Opportunities tab to
purchase the 10-question quiz associated
with this article. CEP quizzes cost $15 for
members and $25 for non-members. The
quizzes are worth 1.0 Scientific or Business
CEP, depending on the content. Successful
completion of the quiz will result in 1.0 CEP
reported directly to ABC and BOC at the
end of each quarter.
Look for additional CEP-eligible articles in
future issues of the magazine; previous
articles are available in the magazine archive
at www.pedorthics.org.
If you have any questions, contact
PFA, at (229) 389-3440 or e-mail:
[email protected].
One of the hallmarks of ACA is the significant increase in
deductibles and co-payments. Once a high deductible plan
Current Pedorthics March/April 2016
39