Wound Care Articles

The Case for Emerging Market Wound Care (Part 1 of 3)

This article is part one of a research series. The full text, and follow on pieces, can be found on LinkedIn as originally published.  As the business of advanced wound care in North America and Western Europe has boomed for the past two decades, most major wound care product and services firms, which are overwhelmingly […]

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Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act: Focus on the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System CY2017: Part 1

Welcome to 2017! This new year brings our focus to the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015. On October 14, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final rule with comment period to implement MACRA’s new Quality Payment Program (QPP). The MACRA repeals the Medicare Part B Sustainable […]

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Diagnosis and Documentation Drive Medical Necessity

A medically necessary service must prove to be reasonable and necessary to diagnose or treat a patient’s medical condition. Furthermore, the diagnosis code(s) reported (on the claim) with the service rendered is to justify (to a payer) “why” a service was performed. The diagnosis reported can determine the medical necessity of the procedure. Clinicians must […]

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Review of 2016 National Patient Safety Goal: “Time-out”

In wound care, clinical and operational rules help maintain compliance with standards, and checklists can provide an audit tool to ensure that requirements have been followed. One example of using a checklist to help maintain compliance in the hospital involves a time-out, which is one of The Joint Commission’s 2016 National Patient Safety Goals. Defined […]

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Frequently Asked Questions: Physician Quality Reporting System

The Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) is in full documentation swing for the calendar year 2016. An eligible provider (EP) must report quality measures to avoid penalties in the future, as discussed in the September column of Practice Points. If he/she is not satisfying PQRS reporting, the EP will be subject to a reduction in […]

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Leveraging Physician Quality Reporting System Data

Recently, I have had the opportunity to work with a number of eligible professionals (EPs) reporting for Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) in CY2016. There were many interesting questions from each of the engaged providers. One question included “Why should the EP participate in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) quality initiatives?” To learn […]

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Frequently Asked Questions: Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use

Questions regarding Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use are generated in the normal course of business. It is important to know where to obtain accurate answers to be compliant with the program. Recently, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has changed the system it uses for frequently asked questions (FAQs). To access all of the […]

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The Strategic View of Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use: Part 7: Objective 10: Public Health Reporting/Measure Option 3—Specialized Registry Reporting

As in previous columns, we are continuing to review the objectives and measures for Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use set forth from 2015 through 2017. In this column, we review Objective 10: Public Health Reporting Measure Option 3 Specialized Registry Reporting (Table).1This is the final Objective and Measure Option within Objective 10. The Centers for […]

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The Strategic View of Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use: Part 6

As in previous columns, we are continuing to review the objectives and measures for Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use (MU) set forth from 2015 through 2017. In this column, you will find information detailing Objective 10: Public Health Reporting Measure Option 2—Syndromic Surveillance Reporting. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) provided a definition […]

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The Strategic View of Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use: Part 5

Objective 9: Public Health Reporting/Measure Option 1—Immunization Registry Reporting As in subsequent columns, we are continuing to review the objectives and measures for Modified Stage 2 Meaningful Use set forth from 2015 through 2017. In this column, you will find information detailing Objective 9: Public Health Reporting. You will note there are 3 Measure Options […]

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