March 21st 2025
"If you determine you can invest in a volatile environment, the best approach is to do so over a period of time," writes Jeff Witz, CFP.
February 27th 2025
CMS: 'We are trying to reduce physicians' burden'
February 15th 2004Las Vegas--The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services istaking steps to lessen the burden that its policies create for physicians,according to two West Coast representatives of the agency. Physicians alsohave more influence on shaping health care policy, including the value ofservices, than they realize, said the officials, both physicians themselves.
CMS adopts identifier for use in transactions under HIPAA
February 5th 2004The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has adopted the National Provider Identifier (NPI) as the standard unique health identifier for health care providers to use in filing and processing health care claims and other transactions.
Use -59 modifier when billing for indwelling stent
February 1st 2004Q I am in a multiple-physician urology practice. One of our physiciansbelieves that billing 52332 with 52352 or 52353 with a 59 modifiershould be paid, and that billing 52005 with 52332 with the 59 modifiershould be paid (ie, 52005-59). When is it appropriate to use the 59modifier?
Reimbursement for cancer drugs drops to 85% of AWP
January 1st 2004Washington--The new Medicare reform bill, which for the first time providesa prescription drug benefit for Medicare recipients, comes with a hiddencost for physicians who administer chemotherapy drugs in their offices-andperhaps their patients.
Urology avoids financial woes of other specialties
January 1st 2004Minneapolis--Surgeons and other physicians across the country continueto deal with the higher costs of practicing medicine in the face of decliningreimbursements. Those factors added up to lower profit margins for U.S.physician groups in 2002 and a continuing awareness of the need to pay attentionto all of the vagaries of the business of practicing medicine. For the mostpart, urologists showed little change in reimbursement.
CMS updates process for making coverage decisions
October 9th 2003The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it has updatedand improved its process for making Medicare coverage decisions. A noticepublished in the Federal Register on Sept. 26 incorporates lessons learnedover the past 3 years and implements certain requirements of the Medicare,Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act (BIPA) of 2000.
Many physician groups are showing losses, survey shows
October 9th 2003Many U.S. physician groups are experiencing losses in the midst of anincreasingly competitive and regulatory environment, according to a recentsurvey by the American Medical Group Association. Results for medical groupfinancial performance on a per-physician basis revealed that the averagegroup lost $3,977 per physician.
Physician in office should charge for that day's services
October 1st 2003Also, advice on billing for marker seeds and national figures for E&MservicesQ I work for two urologists. We have changed our schedule so thatone physician is always in the office when we administer leuprolide acetateinjections and perform uroflows, catheterizations, and other procedures.Who should charge for the service?
Urologists and drug samples: How to avoid legal pitfalls
October 1st 2003A number of urologists have been implicated in two high-profile casesconcerning the illegal sale of drug samples. In this Urology Times SpecialReport, OIG attorneys outline several steps to take-and activities to avoid-tokeep you and your practice compliant with current regulations.
Managing prostatitis requires a multi-faceted approach
September 1st 2003Although antibiotics are commonly used to treat symptoms of chronic pelvicpain syndrome, this approach is beneficial in a relatively small subsetof patients, and urologists must consider alternative treatment modalities,including physical therapy. In this exclusive Urology Times interview, JeannettePotts, MD, discusses current research and her own views on the diagnosisand treatment of chronic prostatitis. Dr. Potts is a member of the staffat the Cleveland Clinic Glickman Urological Institute. The interview wasconducted by Philip M. Hanno, MD, of the department of urology, Universityof Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
Urologists may be targeted in second LHRH case
August 1st 2003Wilmington, DE-The federal government will likely pursue urologistsin a second round of investigations surrounding the fraudulent marketingand sale of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonists for prostatecancer. Just how far the probe will extend remains a source of debate amonglegal experts familiar with the case.
Studies offer valuable advice on stone prevention
July 1st 2003Up to 5% of Americans will be affected by stone disease over the courseof their lifetime. Despite major advances in shockwave lithotripsy and endoscopictechnologies, we must not underestimate the role of medical therapy in preventingstone recurrence. Two studies presented at the recent AUA annual meetingand reported in this issue of Urology Times (see page 10) offer valuablelessons on this aspect of stone management.
Multiple procedures, two physicians: Here's how to bill
July 1st 2003In a previous issue of Urology Times, this column discussed multiple procedures and the bundling edits for a single physician ("When to bill and not to bill for multiple procedures," May 2002, page 62). This article will address multiple procedures performed at the same encounter by two separate physicians.
Liability reform may come at expense of another pay cut
June 1st 2003Congress may want to cut provider payments to pay for parts of Medicarebill, Scully saysWashington-There are signs that House Republicans and the Bush administrationmay be preparing to pull out all the stops to pass medical liability insurancereform legislation this year as a way to placate physicians who face anotherprojected reduction in Medicare reimbursement levels next year.
Use appropriate codes for residual urine ultrasounds
June 1st 2003AUA recommends 51798 any time ultrasound is performed to check for residualurineQ We use the BVI-3000 BladderScan from Diagnostic Ultrasound for residualurine. They show a shadow of amount left in the bladder on a printed report.Is this still considered a non-image? Is there any way we can use 76775using the BVI-3000?