Monthly Archives: October 2020
What We’re Reading – Identity theft risk spiking with COVID-19
A very interesting article from Physician Practice discusses scams that have resulted from the pandemic and provides several good sources of additional information. In a nutshell, identify theft happens every two seconds, has affected 30% of the US population and … Read Full Post
What We’re Reading – Employers make ‘remarkable’ pivot to virtual hiring
If we all had to admit it, COVID has ushered in some good changes: more remote work and schedule flexibility; new safety and sanitizing practices that may protect us from even the common cold; Zoom-ing has perhaps made us more … Read Full Post
What We’re Reading – Get Ready for these 4 Changes Coming to the Business World in 2021
We believe 2020 will go down as the Year – if not the eon – of Adaptation. It certainly seems like we’ve lived an eon in just 10 months, doesn’t it? Not only have employees, children, consumers et al adapted, … Read Full Post
CMS Added 11 New Telehealth Services
Effective October 14, 2020, CMS added 11 new services to its list of approved telehealth codes, which include cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation. This handy list contains all the telehealth services, the dates on which they were approved and whether they … Read Full Post
President’s Order to Protect and Improve Medicare
President Trump signed an Executive Order on October 3, 2020 aimed at protecting and improving the Medicare program. The Order outlines steps to improve fiscal sustainability of the Medicare program and plans to increase choices, flexibility and value. Below is … Read Full Post
What We’re Reading – CMS Announces the Resumption of Medicare Audits
In a previous post, we announced that CMS would be resuming program integrity audits in August. This recent article explained some additional details of their “short-lived hiatus.” Despite the continuing public health emergency (PHE), CMS did resume on August 3rd … Read Full Post
Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 3
For 2021 coding, which begins on October 1, 2020, Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 3 (N18.3) was changed to N18.30 Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 3, unspecified (This code corresponds to Glomerular Filtration Rates (GFRs) between 30 and 59.) N18.31 Chronic Kidney … Read Full Post
What We’re Reading – Walmart partners with Clover Health to offer Medicare Advantage plans
It was just a matter of time before more players entered the healthcare space, which has been front & center for some time, but it’s interesting to see a retail giant take steps to become an insurer. Beginning next year, … Read Full Post
What We’re Reading – New CMS Data Highlights ‘Massive’ Expansion of Home Care-Related Medicare Advantage Benefits
CMS announced significant positive changes for 2021 Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, two of which are quite impactful for the home health industry. Supplemental MA benefits will be offered by more plans in 2021. This article covers the two broad categories … Read Full Post
CMS Announced Significant Added MA Benefits for 2021
CMS announced numerous significant changes for Medicare Advantage (MA) plans that will positively impact members in 2021: MA membership is projected to be at an all-time high of 26.9 million, compared to 24.4 million in 2020. In 2021, beneficiaries with … Read Full Post