Strategies For Success Through Covid And Beyond

We would first like to talk about technology and accessibility. For many offices, this has been a major priority and a critical element of them staying in business through this difficult time.  It’s not just about how accessible you are as a practice but also how well you are communicating this to your patient base.

1. Hey, I’m Open.  The first thing you should already be doing is communicating that you’re open for business and accepting new patients.  Early on there were numerous offices considered provider offices considered nonessential which left many patients wondering when they would be able to see their provider.  Effectively communicating that you’re open is critical during this time of flux.  You can do this with signage on your office, online and through social media.  You need to ensure your patients have the latest information regarding your hours of operation and protocols for new patients.  For active patients that have agreed to receive texts, sending out a mass text with updates regarding your hours of operation and a link to your website with new policies is very effective.  You can also include a link to schedule a telemedicine visit if this is something you’re offering.  This is a good place to remind you about including email and texting consents in your paperwork if it’s not already there.
2. Using Website & Social.  Websites and a social media presence have moved beyond being nice features to being absolutely critical.  There is no reason that your practice shouldn’t be harnessing the capabilities of social and web platforms to communicate with your patients and provide tools that enhance their experience.  Online appointments are just the beginning.  You should have signs in your office and within all of your communication encouraging your patients to subscribe to your website via email or follow your social media accounts.  There has never been a less expensive way to communicate.  Don’t neglect this area of your practice because your competition certainly isn’t.  We actually love it when practices use their social media accounts and/or YouTube to post video messages to their patients.  
3. Telemedicine Now. If you haven’t started offering some form of telemedicine then now is the time to jump on this train.  Telemedicine is going to be a primary method of seeing patients for the rest of your career.  With Covid, commercial insurance payers and Medicare have relaxed many of the standards of care that previously stood in the way of organizations offering telemedicine.  These relaxations include the ability to use a broad variety of platforms for telehealth consultations as well as a broadening of services you can bill for.  There are new modifiers with expanded coverage of specialties and services under telemedicine.  In addition, many payers have made the credentialing/contracting process for telemedicine easier.  While they have temporarily instituted a reprieve of some of their requirements, it’s important that you ensure your payer agreements are set up to bill for telemedicine once the pandemic has subsided.  Consult with your EHR provider and let them know that you would like to start offering telemedicine visits to find out if they have a fully integrated platform that you can jump on which will interface with your system.
4. Real Time Chat.  One other thing you can do to enhance accessibility which we really like is real time chat on your website.  This is something that is still somewhat nascent in healthcare but can really help differentiate your practice from your peers.  Anything that communicates to your potential patients that your practice has adopted the latest technology is certainly worth considering.  It’s actually a more cost effective way to communicate as one receptionist can have multiple chats going on at the same time.  It is also something easily done by remote employees so long as they have access to your practice management system.
5. Remote Patient Monitoring.  Adding remote patient monitoring is another example of something that will improve patient care, reduce ER visits, increase revenue and help you differentiate your practice from competitors.  With RPM you can monitor a number of important health factors Activity, Blood pressure, Glucose monitors, Weight, Respiratory flow rate & Pulse oximetry.  RPM is a critical addition to any practice routinely treating patients with chronic conditions or with a large Medicare patient base.  In addition to improving patient care, you will see over $250,000 annually if 200 patients are enrolled.  

A) Telephone Services:

Codes to Bill (FYI the G codes are for Medicare, the 9xxxx codes are for all other payers):

• 98966 (5-10 min)

• 98967 (11-20 min)

• 98968 (21-30 min)

Qualifying Circumstances:

• Non-face-to-face assessment/management provided over the telephone
• New or established patients
• Not related to episode of care within the last 7 days
• Not billed if telephone service results in decision to see the patient within 24 hours or soonest available appointment

B) Online/Skype/Digital Format:

Codes (FYI the G codes are for Medicare, the 9xxxx codes are for all other payers):

• 98970/G2061* (5-10 min)

• 98971/G2062* (11-20 min)

• 98972/G2063* (21+ min)

Qualifying Circumstances:

• Patient-initiated through the electronic health record (EHR) portal, secure email, etc.
• New or established patients
• Require evaluation to inform management of the patient (mandatory E/M component)
• Billed once for cumulative time devoted during a seven-day period
• Documentation and permanent storage of encounter required
• Place-of-service code 11—Office is primarily used for typical face-to-face procedures provided in audiology offices. 
• Place-of-service code 02—Telehealth indicates that the services were provided through a telecommunication system.