ACTION ALERT:
Effective March 1st, SLPS will not be able to bill MESSA (a division of BCBS that insures primarily teachers), for services unless there is a Doctor onsite or they are affiliated with a hospital. There will be a 6 month transition period where they can continue to see current patients, but cannot take any new ones.
MSHA is forming a coalition of individuals in private practice
to deal with this issue. If you would like to join this coalition,
please leave contact information with the
MSHA office or at
517.332.5691.
Conference News:
Mark Kander, M.A., Director of Medicare and Medicaid and Helath Care Regulatory Analysis, ASHA will be presenting a 3 hour short course, March 27th, 8:30-11:45 am at the Annual MSHA Conference at the Kalamazoo Radisson on Medicare Compliance for SLPs: Enrollment/Claims/Documentation.
Participants will learn diagnosis and CPT coding rules and apply this knowledge to deciphering the Medicare fee schedule and completing the standard claim form. Clinical documentation rules will also be reviewed and referenced. The session also instructs SLPs how to enroll in the Medicare program as a private practitioner.
Mark Kander has been the director of Medicare and Medicaid and then the director of health care regulatory analysis since 1990 in the Government Relations and Public Policy Division of ASHA. He assists members with a wide variety of problems encountered in the Medicare and Medicaid claims process and reviews and comments on draft documents circulated by Medicare agencies. Mark Kander is the co-author of ASHA's Medicare Handbook for Audiologists and Medicare Handbook for Speech-Language Pathologists (currently under revision). He is a graduate of Ohio State University (B.S. in business administration) and George Washington University (M.A. in health services administration).
He will also be speaking at the Medical SLP Forum Luncheon, Saturday, March 28th at 11:45. Also included in the forum lunch are current topics to providing services in light of expanding technology, limited reimbursement and changing patterns of practice. You must pre-register for the lunch. NO TICKETS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON SITE
For more information please contact Bev Jaynes at craig_n_bev@yahoo.com or the MSHA office at msha@att.net Conference materials are available on the Annual Conference page.
The American Academy of Private Practice in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology (AAPPSPA) annual convention will be held at Walt Disney World. David Nelson, M.S., L.P.C. will be speaking at the clincial institute on "Effective Intervention Applications for Individuals with Disorders in Communicating and Relating, including ASD, Utilizing a Floortime Approach". On April 30 and May 1, topics will range from business and legal issues to a variety of clinical topics and discussions. 1.9 CEUs are offered. For more information please contact Laurie Botstein at www.aappspa.org