http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management.html en-us Copyright 2008 American Academy of Family Physicians http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080512delay-npi.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080512delay-npi.html The AAFP has joined the AMA and 35 other national medical organizations in urging HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt to delay a fast-approaching deadline that would require Medicare providers to file Medicare claims using only their National Provider Identifier, or NPI, number. In a letter dated May 1, the medical organizations cited their growing concerns about the ability of physician practices, clearinghouses and commercial insurance payers to meet the May 23 deadline. ann@aafp.org Mon, 12 May 2008 11:35:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080508tmed-mhiq.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080508tmed-mhiq.html Medical practices working on becoming medical homes now can measure their progress, thanks to a free and comprehensive assessment tool recently made available by TransforMED, a practice redesign initiative affiliated with the AAFP. ann@aafp.org Thu, 08 May 2008 15:25:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080430npitest.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080430npitest.html CMS is promoting a one-day testing exercise, dubbed "Legacy Free Day," on May 7 that is aimed at helping Medicare providers evaluate their National Provider Identifier, or NPI, readiness before CMS' May 23 deadline for using the NPI number alone. ann@aafp.org Wed, 30 Apr 2008 14:10:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080425pqrioptions.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080425pqrioptions.html CMS recently announced tweaks to its 2008 Physician Quality Reporting Initiative, or PQRI, that should make it easier for family physicians and other eligible health care professionals to participate in -- and benefit from -- the program this year. ann@aafp.org Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:50:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080418tmedndp.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080418tmedndp.html More than 70 family physicians and other health care professionals representing 30 family medicine practices from across the country met April 11-13 in Kansas City, Mo., to mark the end of a national demonstration project launched nearly two years ago by TransforMED, a not-for-profit redesign initiative affiliated with the AAFP. sporter@aafp.org Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:40:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080410eprescriberule.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080410eprescriberule.html CMS recently released a final rule that sets uniform standards for electronic prescribing, or e-prescribing, under the Medicare Part D prescription drug program. The rule does not require physicians, pharmacies and other providers to adopt e-prescribing as a condition of their participation in Medicare. Late last year, Academy EVP Douglas Henley, M.D., spoke out against mandatory e-prescribing, saying that calls for such action were preliminary. ann@aafp.org Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080306getconnected.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080306getconnected.html On March 4, the AAFP and four other national physician organizations launched a new program designed to help physicians send prescriptions to pharmacies electronically. The "Get Connected" program features a Web site where physicians can assess their e-prescribing readiness and learn, step-by-step, what needs to be done to make e-prescribing a reality in their practices. sporter@aafp.org Thu, 06 Mar 2008 16:15:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080305pqrireport.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080305pqrireport.html Tens of thousands of health care providers -- some of them family physicians -- will collect a little extra cash later in 2008 because of their participation in CMS' 2007 Physician Quality Reporting Initiative, or PQRI. That's according to preliminary data recently released by CMS in response to an inquiry from Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chair of the Senate Finance Committee, about the initiative's progress. sporter@aafp.org Wed, 05 Mar 2008 14:25:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080305nycehrs.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080305nycehrs.html New York City is moving ahead with plans to equip more than 1,000 primary care physician offices with electronic health records, or EHRs, by the end of this year -- that's enough practices to cover about 1 million patients. jarvantes@aafp.org Wed, 05 Mar 2008 16:25:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080229cptcodes.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20080229cptcodes.html Recent changes in CPT codes for non-face-to-face physician services could help turn the tide against payers' long-standing reluctance to pay physicians for telephone and online patient consultations. The new -- and, in some cases, revised -- CPT codes took effect on Jan. 1 and represent the culmination of several years of teamwork by the AAFP; the American College of Physicians; and the American Academy of Pediatrics, or AAP. sporter@aafp.org Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:35:00 CST Practice Management