http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management.html en-us Copyright 2009 American Academy of Family Physicians http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091119cmsextendsperiod.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091119cmsextendsperiod.html CMS has extended Medicare's 2010 provider participation enrollment end date to Jan. 31, 2010. This gives physicians currently participating in Medicare or considering participation in 2010 one month beyond the normal Dec. 31 cutoff to make a participation decision. ann@aafp.org Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:30:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091113health-it-tstmny.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091113health-it-tstmny.html The federal government's Health Information Technology, or Health IT, Standards Committee recently formed an implementation workgroup charged with bringing practicing physicians' technology experiences to light. As part of that process, two AAFP members, Louis Spikol, M.D., of Allentown, Pa., and Tripp Bradd, M.D., of Front Royal, Va., participated in a providers panel during a public hearing of the workgroup on Oct. 29 in Washington. sporter@aafp.org Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:50:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091111fpm-ehr-surv.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091111fpm-ehr-surv.html The plethora of electronic health record, or EHR, products on the market today may be daunting for purchasers, but an updated user satisfaction survey from Family Practice Management could help scale down the choices. sporter@aafp.org Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:15:00 CST Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091030rulechanges.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091030rulechanges.html Effective Oct. 5, physicians who participate in Medicare must include their names and National Provider Identifiers, or NPIs, when ordering prescriptions, medical supplies or medical services or when making patient referrals for service. And enrollment in Medicare will be checked against the Medicare Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System, or PECOS. ann@aafp.org Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:50:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091028pwc-data-rpt.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091028pwc-data-rpt.html Electronic health records, or EHRs, offer a treasure trove of patient health data, and now a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers explores the challenges involved with putting those data to good use to improve patient care, predict public health trends and reduce health care costs. sporter@aafp.org Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:50:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091021ehr-select.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091021ehr-select.html The AAFP's TransforMED and medical diagnostic equipment manufacturer Welch Allyn recently announced the launch of Welch Allyn's first professional consulting program, dubbed EHR Preparation and Selection Services. The program is designed to help physicians prepare for, evaluate and select the most appropriate electronic health record, or EHR, for their practices. sporter@aafp.org Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:00:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091019us-uk-p4p.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091019us-uk-p4p.html The heavy investment in a primary care infrastructure in the United Kingdom may have better prepared physician practices there to achieve pay-for-performance, or P4P, quality measures than their U.S. counterparts. That's one of the conclusions of a recent study in the Sept. 11 issue of Family Practice. jarvantes@aafp.org Mon, 19 Oct 2009 16:10:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091012breach-help.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091012breach-help.html The Academy has unveiled a new resource that should help family physicians interpret language regarding new requirements from HHS that compel covered entities and their business associates to notify individuals if their health information is released inappropriately, or breached. ann@aafp.org Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:05:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091012consumers-health-tech.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091012consumers-health-tech.html A new report prepared by an outside research group for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, or AHRQ, suggests that American consumers are ripe for education about health information technology, or health IT. sporter@aafp.org Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:40:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091006h1n1-pay-updt.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20091006h1n1-pay-updt.html Nailing down the correct coding information for administration of the vaccine for novel influenza A (H1N1) virus is proving to be nearly as daunting a task as distribution of the vaccine itself. So, to keep family physicians abreast of the most current coding instructions from the nation's largest payers, the AAFP has created a page on the Academy's Web site devoted to H1N1 administration coding. ann@aafp.org Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:45:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20090916h1n1-paymt.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20090916h1n1-paymt.html The FDA's approval of four vaccines against the novel influenza A (H1N1) virus is official. Now, physicians in private practice need details from health insurance companies about how to code and bill payers for administering the vaccine to receive timely payment for this service. ann@aafp.org Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:55:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20090909mgma-surv.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/practice-management/20090909mgma-surv.html A good way to take the pulse of America's medical practices in tough economic times is to survey medical practice managers. And for the second year in a row, the Medical Group Management Association, or MGMA, a membership organization for professional administrators and leaders of medical group practices, has done just that. sporter@aafp.org Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:00:00 CDT Practice Management http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/pcmh.html http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/pcmh.html As the nation increasingly turns its attention to health care reform, the patient-centered medical home, or PCMH, has emerged as a viable alternative to what many describe as a profoundly broken system of health care. Long-championed by the AAFP and other primary care provider groups, the PCMH focuses on establishing primary care as the foundation of health care in the United States. Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:30:00 CST Practice Management