Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) of North Carolina will implement a new sleep management program for sleep testing and therapy services on Dec. 1, 2017. The program will be administered by AIM Specialty Health®. Providers will be required to obtain preauthorization for the [...]

On Oct. 11, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) opened the “virtual group” election period for participation in the 2018 Merit-based Incentive Performance System (MIPS) performance year. Clinicians have from now until Dec. 1, 2017, to make an election. This process was [...]

The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) required the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a Quality Payment Program, which comprises two participation tracks:  Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs) and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) program. Two webinars [...]

The final payment adjustment under the Value Modifier (VM) and corresponding Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) is underway. On Sept. 18, 2017, CMS released the 2016 PQRS feedback reports and 2016 Annual Quality and Resource Use Reports (QRURs). The 2016 PQRS feedback reports indicate [...]

MIPSwizard is an easy to use online tool to help MIPS-eligible clinicians quickly and easily participate in the MIPS program. Similar to online tax preparation software, MIPSwizard helps guide clinicians through a few easy steps to rapidly collect, validate and submit their results to [...]

Subscribers to the online AASM Manual for the Scoring of Sleep and Associated Events now have access to a new FAQs document. On the AASM website go to “My Account” and then select “Subscriptions.” After you select the Scoring Manual subscription, you will be [...]

Harvard professors exploring how to improve value in health care have found that by spending more time talking patients through procedures beforehand, physicians can cut down on recovery costs and avoid costly complications later on.