Dental Sleep Medicine Insider January DSM Insider 2018 | Page 8

SAY YES! TO BECOMING A MEDICARE DME PROVIDER I clearly recall attending a Den- tal Sleep Medicine CE course and the subject of Medicare was ad- dressed toward the end. At this point we were all friendly and comfortable with each other and the question was, “Is this covered by Medicare?” The instructor of the course said, yes, its covered but I do not suggest anyone be- come a Medicare provider be- cause of all the regulations and the lack of profitability. There was one dentist way in the back of the room who piped up and said with confidence “We treat Medicare patients” and his of- fice manager said, “someone has to service these patients and we LOVE Medicare!” I am not kidding when I say there was an audible gasp. Attendees took turns chiming in with com- ments like “you can have it!”, “yeah, good luck with the au- dit!” and “I can’t afford to treat Medicare patients.” Unfortunate- ly, these naysayers were misin- formed in their assumptions and misguided by the instructor. Let me tell you about the WOW moment I recently had which was the impetus of this article. One of my clients asked for a year end report detailing their Medi- care payments. Do you know what we found? LESIA CRAWFORD follow them. When GoGo Billing clients become Medicare DME approved as non-participating providers, I personally provide training and review of the Medi- care guidelines and required documentation as well as advice on case presentation with finan- cial agreements and how to en- sure maximum reimbursement for you and your patients. If you would like a copy of the lo- cal coverage determination (LCD) for oral appliances, please email me a request and I will send you the rules. Keep in mind the FIRST RULE of Medicare billing is you must be approved by Medicare and have a PTAN number issued to your office. INTERESTED? JOIN ME AT THE NADSM SYMPOSIUM. REGISTER NOW The average payment per Medi- care claim was $3762, and this doesn’t even factor in the addi- tional patient payments. So, tell me again why we should not all take Medicare?? Here’s the breakdown. This office treated 40 patients with Medicare coverage throughout the year. Medicare paid approximately $41,000 and supplemental or sec- ondary plans paid an additional $109,000. Another common mis- conception is that practices have to accept the Medicare allowed amount. However, as a non-par- ticipating provider you can actu- ally bill patients your full fee. Yes, there are rules with Medi- care, and yes, there are some rules that are exclusive to Medi- care. My advice is, do not be afraid of the rules. Just learn them and Lesia Crawford, CEO of GoGo Billing GoGo Billing offers help with Tricare registration for no charge and Medicare creden- tialing services for DME, Part B and Ordering and Refer- ring. Enter code DS3100 for $100.00 off DME and Part B credentialing. Contact me at [email protected] or call [phone] ext.1