February 2008 Client Newsletter

MEDICARE DEDUCTIBLES = DECREASE CASH FLOW

The 2008 Medicare Part B deductible increased to $135 further slowing cash flow over the previous year. Cash flow will be down as usual in January & February since Medicare deductibles hit - until secondary insurance & patient payments are received in February & March. Just a reminder that historically for all providers it takes until the end of March before cash flow catches up to normal levels due to the new insurance deductibles (Medicare and other insurances). This means that Days-in-Accounts Receivable and AR will go up in January & February then begin to decrease to normal levels in March when cash flow catches up.


NPI # Information From Medicare
(MLN Matters 2007-12, December 2007, pp. 72-73).

· Effective May 23, 2008, providers who have not obtained an NPI # are not permitted to refer or order services or items for Medicare beneficiaries.
· Physicians (MD & DO) and the following provider types are the only ones allowed to refer or order services or items for beneficiaries: Nurse Practitioners (NP), Physician Assistants (PA), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS), and Certified Nurse Midwives (CNM).
· Effective May 3, 2008, Medicare will begin requiring an NPI number for all ordering & referring providers regardless of whether that referring or ordering provider participates in the Medicare program.

CPB has finished updating nearly 3,000 referring physician’s NPI numbers in its database so we are ready for these changes.

We are currently testing sending only the Rendering Provider’s NPI #’s with Medicare. All providers have been tested and only one was required by Medicare to complete an 855I application.

Horizon, as of yesterday, still is not ready to test! We will continue to test claims as insurers indicate they are ready.


Uniformed Services Family Health Plan Bankruptcy

You may recall that CPB filed the necessary paperwork to obtain payment for our clients. All payments have now been received.