Each year, when the new RVU values and rates are announced, a tremendous amount of attention is paid to the "Conversion Factor" - is it going down 10% this year, after all? Will the cut only be 5%? Could it go up by 5%? Most of the time, little atten...
We have had confirmation that the recent bulletin from UHC interpreted to mean that they intended to delay -25 modifier payments indefinitely does not refer to the -25 modifiers! They are still on track for a Dec 8 "release" with backdating to Octobe...
I have two you'll-see-it-here-first-if-not-only reports to provide you about the 2008 RVUs, but I'm reloading my personal machine (new hard drive) and I can't get to them until Friday. Until then, you have to suffer with this important FluMist news.
I have to admit that I was a bit dismayed, but fascinated, by the giant Microsoft booth at the recent AAP show in SF. The fascination came from the cool vein-finder tool (if you saw it, you know what I'm talking about - I can't find a link quickly). ...
This month's issue of the Pediatric Coder's Pink Sheet features yours truly in a piece about E&M distribution along with Dr. Lander, Susanne Madden, and Donelle Holle. Such esteemed company! Anyway, we give away our latest E&M benchmarks:
I hate parroting things from PedTalk and elsewhere, but this one is big (and it's a tough week). Straight from Susanne Madden, of course, is an update to a previous important announcement from UnitedHealthCare and the AAP that was made at the SF NCE:
My apologies for brevity and inconsistency, but we are in the midst of a family emergency and I am racing out of town. In my potential absence over this Thanksgiving week - and later, to augment or even replace your reading here - check out Susanne M...
[Note: Since this post, there are have been major changes to the RVUs. Check more recent posts in this blog, like this one. You may also want to go directly to PCC's on-line RVU tools.]
If you don't have the time to read this all, I'll provide my conclusion here: JR is right. "Healthcare gift cards" fall only a few centimeters short of being an out-and-out scam, imo.
Jennifer Godreau, from the Coding Institute, wrote to me the other day to ask whether their Pediatric Coding Alert is covering enough of the right material. You see, PCC customers get a free subscription to their content and we distribute the monthly...
By the time any reasonable person reads this, I will be giving or have given a talk at the local AAP VT Fall meeting here in Burlington. I am quite flattered that Dr. Aakre thought me capable of being sandwiched in among the likes of Drs. Barry Heath...
One thing leads to another and I found myself poking around the American Journal of Managed Care today. Doesn't that title seem redundant to you? As though there might be, say, a Canadian version of the same publication?
It's a Sunday and things are crazy (anyone else with kids who play hockey?). However, I couldn't resist passing this one along. I know there are a lot of PedTalk readers here - over 100, on Friday alone - so, my apologies for repeating it, but it's w...
For those who missed it, here is most of a recent editorial in the WSJ by Dr. Ari Brown responding to Jenny McCarthy's recent book which blames immunizations for her child's autism. You can find the entire thing here if you have a WSJ subscription.
I had a great time speaking to Drs. Bravo and Rogu on their growing podcast, The Pediatric Lounge, to discuss the state of independent pediatricians and the use of data in a pediatric practice. They are cranking out episodes (which is a good thing) and anyone who supports independent pediatricians should tune in to their effort. What they are doing takes a tremendous amount of work and their guest list is amazing (well, besides me). They turned our conversation into back-to-back episodes (32 and 33), "Independent Pediatric Practice 2022" and "Data Data Data and Managing a Pediatric Office." If you prefer video, you catch up on their YouTube channel.