Payment Reductions Loom for Dialysis Transports Section 637 Remember “Section 637.” This is the section of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 that will require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to reduce Medicare payments for BLS Non-Emergency ambulance transports nationwide by 10% beginning on October 1, 2013. Non-Emergency, Basic Life Support […]
Proposed Rule Tightens the Screw for Ambulance Feeling Beat Up? CMS published a proposed rule this week which intends to bolster fraud prevention and also limit certain Medicare privileges we’ve grown accustomed to in the ambulance industry. CMS is inviting comments on the proposal now through June 28, 2013. The American Ambulance Association has committed […]
Office and Operations— A Partnership Who’s Driving the Bus? Why do we have so many “slang” terms for the ambulance vehicle in EMS? Where did they all come from? I’m just as guilty as anyone for referring to an ambulance as a truck, unit, squad, rig, and my all-time favorite, “bus!” Using one of these […]
Uncovering Medicaid—The Other Entitlement Not Just Medicare For as long as we’ve been around the ambulance billing scene, everyone has hung on every word that comes from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) pertaining to Medicare. But note the name of the agency . . . it not only contains the word “Medicare” […]
The Crystal Ball— Obamacare and EMS The Beginning of Something Different Over the past year or so, we’ve received questions from our clients about the potential effect of “Obamacare” on the future of Emergency Medical Services in the United States. Frankly, it’s impossible to provide concrete answers to these questions right now, because no one […]
American Ambulance Industry Cost Drivers Reported The Other Side of the Equation While this blog typically focuses on incoming revenue and everything ambulance billing, it certainly is a useful exercise to be aware of the costs that drive the American ambulance industry. Ultimately, costs determine our strategies for funding by whatever source in order to […]
Railroad Medicare Releases Results of Ambulance Claim Review The Study A little over a week ago, Palmetto GBA, the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) for the Railroad Medicare program, issued the findings derived from a review of incoming ambulance claims they completed between October and December 2012. Palmetto GBA’s Medical Review (MR) department completed what they […]
Sequestration Update It Happened… Our last blog warned of the possibility that the “Sequester” was going to hit. If you missed that blog, we provided you with information about the government sequester which, at that point, was still being debated in a standoff between Congress and The White House. Well, March came in like a […]
Sequester Could Have Negative Impact on Ambulance Medicare Payments In the News… Congress and President Obama are in the news again over another game of brinksmanship just two months after narrowly avoiding the drop over the “fiscal cliff.” This time the sequestration process threatens to cut Medicare reimbursements. What is Sequestration? For many years there […]
Medical Necessity is a Necessity By Definition Effectively documenting the Medical Necessity of an ambulance transport to support billing has always been a central component of complying with all of the many rules and regulations, as spearheaded by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS, a.k.a “The Feds”). Enhanced Management Services has been a […]
