$70K OCR Penalty for Sharp Health Over HIPAA Right of Access Failures

Sharp HealthCare’s $70,000 civil monetary penalty with OCR is the sixteenth enforcement action under the HIPAA Right of Access Initiative and the second announced this week.  By Jessica Davis California-based Sharp HealthCare, doing business as Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Centers (SRMC), has agreed to a corrective action plan and to pay the Office for Civil Rights a $70,000 civil…

2021 Evaluation and Management Medicare Overhaul

FIRST, ACCESS YOUR FREEBIES OF THE MONTH! Click this link to access your free downloadable for 2021 Coding Changes Guidelines Click this link to access your free downloadable of the Table of Risk Click this link to access your free downloadable Observation & Consult Billing Grid Crosswalk AUGUST NEWSLETTER There are some proposed changes coming January…

BREAKING NEWS: CMS Has Released The Proposed 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

BREAKING NEWS: CMS Has Released The Proposed 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

Highlights: Conversion Factor decreases -11%:  winners and losers by specialty Telehealth services-some extended through the pandemic and beyond E/M Overhaul moving forward for 2021 Supervision and scope of practice changes for extenders and ancillary providers Quality Payment Program updates for MIPS and MPV CMS confirmed that the E/M office visit codes remain on track for their first…

A Brief Review of Common Modifiers

Procedure codes may be “modified” under certain circumstances to more accurately represent the service rendered. Modifiers are used to add information or change the description of service in order to improve accuracy or specificity. The documentation of the service provided must support the use of the modifier. Below are some commonly used modifiers with links…

Breaking News: Codes to add specificity to pathological fractures, CKD & COVID-19 finalized in 2021 ICD-10-CM update

Breaking News: Codes to add specificity to pathological fractures, CKD & COVID-19 finalized in 2021 ICD-10-CM update

by: DecisionHealth Editors  Nearly 500 codes – including the two new U codes for COVID-19 and vaping-related disorders – were finalized to be added to the ICD-10 code set. In addition to the 490 new codes, this update also includes 47 revised codes and 58 codes deemed invalid. Final changes were issued today by the…

10 Ways to Survive the Mental Health Crisis as a Health Care Worker
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10 Ways to Survive the Mental Health Crisis as a Health Care Worker

By Heidi Godman, Contributor ON A RECENT FRIDAY afternoon, while much of the Mount Sinai Health System staff was focusing on patients with COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, Dr. Dennis Charney was thinking about the mental health crisis threatening his colleagues. “Mount Sinai has been the epicenter of the epicenter. We know what…

Doctors report uptick in surprising coronavirus complication: dangerous blood clots

Doctors report uptick in surprising coronavirus complication: dangerous blood clots

By Erika Edwards Three weeks ago, critical care pulmonologist Hugh Cassiere encountered something he hadn’t seen in 24 years of practicing medicine. A 45-year-old man arrived at the hospital where Cassiere works, North Shore University Hospital on Long Island, New York, with fever and severe fatigue — well-known symptoms of the coronavirus — and went…

Losing Your Sense of Taste and Smell With the Coronavirus
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Losing Your Sense of Taste and Smell With the Coronavirus

By David Levine This article is based on reporting that features expert sources. THIS FIRST THING ABBE Piels noticed when she bit into a piece of avocado toast was that she couldn’t taste it. She could feel the heat of the Sriracha sauce on it, but she couldn’t sense any flavor. The same thing occurred…

Crocs, Allbirds, and Clove are giving free shoes to healthcare workers during the COVID-19 crisis

Crocs, Allbirds, and Clove are giving free shoes to healthcare workers during the COVID-19 crisis

BY ELIZABETH SEGRAN The next few months are going to be difficult for doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers around the country who have been summoned to care for the people infected with the coronavirus. Around the world, there is a shortage of personal protective gear that will keep these workers safe as they care…

The 9 Biggest Technology Trends That Will Transform Medicine And Healthcare In 2020

The 9 Biggest Technology Trends That Will Transform Medicine And Healthcare In 2020

By Bernard Marr Healthcare is an industry that is currently being transformed using the latest technology, so it can meet the challenges it is facing in the 21st century. Technology can help healthcare organizations meet growing demand and efficiently operate to deliver better patient care. Here are 9 technology trends that will transform medicine and…