newsletter iss 6 tsa - aaham chapter

The Texas Tumbleweed

An award-winning publication of the AAHAM Texas Bluebonnet Chapter Vol. 1, Issue 7

June, 2007

ASI Recap Special Edition

Third time is (still) a charm at ASI

139 registrants met in Austin, Texas for the 3rd Annual State Institute. The focus of the conference was develop-ing a healthy front-line defense with addressing patient access issues. The meeting had an overall rating of 4.6 out of 5 by the attendees. Some of the comments men-tioned on evaluation sheets given to registrants on what they enjoyed:

• I like the buffet lunch set-up because it was fast. I like not having to change rooms to attend next ses-sion.

• Good job this year!

• Getting to meet other people from different hospitals with the same jobs; wish we had more time to talk to them about their policies and procedures

• Meeting people who do the same job as I do.

• Networking

• Bringing front end topics to the table

• Opportunities for round table discussion and then shared via e-mail with answers/solutions to your group (i.e. Bill Spare)

• The focus of the information shared; large number of presenters who were knowledgeable and articulate.

• Everything was very organized and timely. As a be-ginner, I loved the study session.

• Esther’s Follies was wonderful!

• Case studies; actual stories/experiences by peers

One of the conference hits was an evening escape to Esther’s Follies, a part magic, part vaudeville, part im-prov show. During the show, one of our own, Chris Mor-gan who was featured on stage in a few of the skits and fit in well with the comedy routines. We now have a possible ‘entertainer’ among our membership! Another part of the conference that got lots of attention was the door prizes. Door Prize winners included: Thursday Winners of various $25 gift cards: Belda Villalon-Hill, Knapp Medical Center Julie Shaw, ParrishShaw + Co. Ellen Cozart, Children's Medical Center of Dallas Sabine McNair, Hopkins County Memorial Hospital Winner of MP3 Player (valued at $100): Bill Eikost, Medical Data Systems, Inc.

Texas Patient Access Issues:

DEAL OR

NO DEAL

Did you miss the ASI? Not a problem. Check out the ASI Snapshots starting on page 2


The First Ron Corder Presidential

Award is a Tear Jerker

Friday Winners of various $25 gift cards: Leah Jane Taglienti, Methodist Health System Denise Lenihan, Interim Solutions Our ASI has also become home to our silent auction which subsidizes the Eli Baxter Memorial Scholarship Fund. This year, the Scholarship & Awards Chairman, Dana Mojica, raised $2000. Silent Auction items included: $50 Gift Card donated by Healthcare Recovery Alliance Purchased by Artemio Mier, from JPS Health Network, for $42 $50 AMEX Gift Card donated by D-Med Corporation Purchased by Christine Gray from Texas Children’s Hospital for $60 IPOD Shuffle donated by Medical Data Systems Purchased by Bill Spare, from Methodist Health System, for $90 Phillips Docking Entertainment System donated by West Asset Management Purchased by Bernadette Capps, from Wilbarger General Hospital, for $120 Cash donation of $100 from Adam Holzhauer, from Premium Asset Recovery Corporation Cash donation of $1000 from Misty Morris, from D-Med Corporation Cash donation of $588 from the AAHAM Texas Bluebonnet Chapter

Thanks to all who bid and donated!

Bill Spare, Claudia Corder, Terry Sánchez, Allison

Bill Spare presented the first ever Ron Corder Presidential Award at this year’s ASI. In an effort to honor past Chapter President, Ron Corder, who passed away, his wife Claudia Corder was available for the presentation. The award re-ceipient is choses by the current Chapter President and was

presented to Terry Sánchez Allison. Terry worked diligently with Ron Corder to merge the two Texas AAHAM Chapters (North Texas and Lonestar) mak-ing the award very special and quite the tear jerker. There were some dry eyes in the room but not many. Accepting her award, Terry promised to try to live up to the hard work and dedication of Ron Corder. Prior to the award, a slide show memoriam was shown to the attendees com-

memorating his family and his full life. Terry has been on the Board for the former North Texas Chapter and is also a past Chapter President. She is cur-rently the Education Chairman. She has tirelessly given her time, enthusiasm, and creativity to our chapter and is one

of our biggest assets! Congratulations Terry!


Deal or No Deal:

ASI Snapshots

Table Topic 1: Time of Service Collections and Incentive Programs Bill Spare, MBA, FHFMA, CPAM, Methodist Health System

OVERALL RATING BY ATTENDEES: 4.8

• Excellent information

Table Topic 2: Patient Access Dashboards and Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) in Patient Access Will Walk, Inspirion Consulting, LLC


• Roundtable idea is great; sharing of tools and re-sources

• I really enjoyed the interaction and the focus oppor-tunity provided by this session

Table Topic 3: Eligibility Vendors and Other Outsourcing Opportunities in Patient Access Tom Morgan, NRS Healthcare Services


• Great exchange of ideas; helpful to me with regard to evaluating the need to outsource and various out-sourcing options

Table Topic 4: On-line Tools, Search Engines & Automation Tools for Verification of 3rd-Party Eligibility, Preauthoriza-tion, and Pre-certification Processes Sharon Hughes, Paragon Health & TpHR


• Great interaction and ideas

One of the many highlights to this year’s Annual State Institute is the presentation by Arden Jean Biggar, Vice President, Revenue Cycle, The Methodist Hospital, Houston, TX regarding the “Under and

Uninsured Dilemma in Texas.” Arden outlined the current state of affairs with these statistics:

• Texas has the highest % of uninsured in the U.S. at 25%

compared to a national figure of 15.7% • 79% of Texas’ uninsured work or have a family member who

works

• 18-24 % of uninsured in Texas are non-citizen

• Over 70% of Texas businesses are small employers, with fewer

than 50 employees • Only 37% of small employers offer health insurance

• Only 35 % of employee enroll because of lack of affordable

coverage Source: Task Force on Access to Health Care in Texas: Challenges

of the Uninsured and Underinsured The contributing factors to the current Under and Insured Dilemma

outlined by Arden included: - Increasing insurance premiums leaving some insured unable to

pay their portion.

The Texas Under and Uninsured Dilemma Arden Jean Biggar from Methodist Hospital

DEAL

!

DEAL

!

- Rising insurance costs force employers to transfer costs to em-ployees, forcing some to decide whether to forego insurance of

leave part of family uninsured. - Medical pricing structure that covers managed care discounts and government payment shortfalls, but leaves the uninsured with

high charge markups. - For those who do have insurance there is little to no coverage for

mental health / wellness services. - Shortage of health care professionals in Texas results in increased

cost of delivery - Medical expenses are the single biggest reason for personal bankrupt-

cies - Lack of access to pri-mary care creates an overdependence on Emergency Depart-ments for basic medi-

cal care.

Lastly, Arden clearly identi-fied in her presentation, ways in which providers may respond to the in-crease in uncompensated

care as follows:

Donor

Ann Diamond (214) 382-2301

[email protected],

Roundtable Discussions


The Texas Under and Uninsured Dilemma (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13) Arden Joan Biggar from Methodist Hospital

I. Charity Care Modifications • Modify existing program by raising upper limits for income-

based free care & discounts • ‘Fast Track’ for patients clearly unable to pay

• Factor medical debts into patient’s annual income in deter-

mining patient’s portion owed

II. Measures in Emergency Center • Require upfront payment for non-emergent treatment –

ensure appropriate screening and process for collection &

treatment • Distribute list of Free Clinic locations – if patients choose to

leave, ensure they leave with options for follow-up attention • Form Fast Track within the EC for efficient handling of those

who choose to stay and be treated

III. Measures for Self-Pay Patients

• Discount for Selfpay patients

• Self-pay package pricing for transparency & ease of quoting

prices (see slide)

• Discounts offered for prompt payment of accounts

• Accelerates cash collection

• Provides reduction of charges for uninsured

• One-time Amnesty Program offers generous discount on outstanding bills if payment received by indicated

date • Bank Loan programs

IV. Mitigate Lost Compensation

• Encourage staff efficiency and accountability

• Introduce incentives, use Revenue Cycle Education Dept to train front line staff, upgrade job descriptions

and require a 2 year degree • Use Dashboard to show individual & group perform-

ance on key indicators – giving feedback without judg-

ment to help change behaviors • Create shared goals that demonstrate performance

toward upfront collections, secured accounts, com-

pleted charity care accounts, etc Reported by Terry Sánchez Allison, M.H.A., CPAM, FHFMA

Education Chair, TX AAHAM Bluebonnet Chapter


Comments by Attendees:

• Excellent information; great idea including best practices

• Second-best session! Relevant info from provider level.

• Excellent speaker

• Right on target – would like to have seen even more “boring” statistics

Editor’s Note:

I attended the ASI and brought my cheap disposable camera! My friend Misty Davis helped me take pictures at Esther’s Follies. Issue # 1: I don’t know the names of same of the folks in the pictures. Issue #2: There was another person taking pictures of the sessions with their digital cam-era. When the CD of pictures arrived today, it was blank! So much for advanced technology, huh! If you are pictured in this issue and your name is NOT listed underneath AND you do not know me, please take a mo-ment and email or call me so that I can introduce myself. You have

my most sincere apology.

[email protected] (817) 200-2820, ext. 206

Angie Box, Editor

Gerard Hebert and Angie Box Stephen Kruzick and Damon Santa Maria


Thank you to our ASI Event SponsorsThank you to our ASI Event SponsorsThank you to our ASI Event SponsorsThank you to our ASI Event Sponsors

Buffet LuncheonBuffet LuncheonBuffet LuncheonBuffet Luncheon

CraneWare Representative: Christine De Gree

Phone: (972) 633-9247 Email: [email protected]

Thursday BreakfastThursday BreakfastThursday BreakfastThursday Breakfast

Emdeon Business Services Representative: Katie Stooksbury


Thursday A.M. BreakThursday A.M. BreakThursday A.M. BreakThursday A.M. Break

Financial Corporation of America Representative: David Pickett Phone: (512) 719-3517 Email: [email protected]

Friday A.M. BreakFriday A.M. BreakFriday A.M. BreakFriday A.M. Break

Medical Data Systems, Inc. Representative: Estelle Welte Phone: (888) 773-2255

Email: [email protected]

Board Meeting LuncheonBoard Meeting LuncheonBoard Meeting LuncheonBoard Meeting Luncheon

Max Recovery Solutions, Ltd. Representative: Alan Spiegelhauer


If you would like to sponsor next year’s ASI, please contact Becky at [email protected]


Preventing Patient Identity Theft Scott Noel from HCA and Diane Owens from CMS

Deal or No Deal: ASI Snapshots

An interesting presentation on the topic of Patient Identity Theft and general identity theft was given by Diane Owens and Scott Noel. Diane, a 33 year veteran with the Social Security Administration presented some interesting gen-eral information regarding the fastest growing crime in America, ID theft. She focused on what we can do to pro-tect ourselves and what the SSA is doing to fight the crime. She also reminded us of what to do in the event we feel our SS number has been stolen. She informed the audience that the SSA is now able to receive medical re-cords electronically that are requested for medical disabil-ity claims and included the pertinent information in her handouts. It was a very good overview of reminders to protect ourselves and our patients from this problem. Scott Noel challenged the audience with excellent ques-

tions regarding each facilities’ preparation and guidelines to prevent Medical or Patient Identity Theft. Scott, who is the Director of Education for HCA in San Antonio and Austin, did a great job outlining for us the alarming growth of this problem and offered various suggestions and ways hospitals may combat it. He reviewed the pertinent HI-PAA regulations and all the components that must be addressed to prevent this problem, such as limiting ac-cess to laptops outside the facility, monitoring of medical records access, education, etc. His insightful questions generated many good questions and answers from the audience which made for a lively session.

Reported by Carolyn Nottingham, Nebo Systems

Medicare Reform Garry Keute, VisionShare

OVERALL RATING BY ATTENDEES: 4.5 Comments by Attendees:

• Great!

• Excellent speaker & presentation

• Very useful



• Excellent information given (2)

• Good!

• Great presentation!

• Scott is an excellent speaker who touched on pertinent topics & questions.

• Good information from both presenters

Extreme Makeover: Centralized Pre-Arrival Services Dianna Prachyl, RDH, MS and Paula K. Pruett, CHAM, Children’s Medical Center Dallas

OVERALL RATING BY ATTENDEES: 4.6 Comments by Attendees:

• Best presentation yet – most informative

• Good success story – it’s a lot of work

• Relevant info

• Paula was dynamic and knowledgeable. She should be invited back to speak on the same topic or maybe leadership/influence to gain best outcomes.

• Paula was great! Very good speaker and knowledgeable. Enjoyed this presentation.

• Wow – great presentation!


Whitey Whitehurst (866) 715-2208

Donor


Estimating Patient Balances Julie Wadell from IMaCS and Jaima Pravel from Houston Northwest Hospital

AAHAM is passionate about educational opportunities for its members. So, it was fun to have two presenters at our ASI in Austin who were equally as passionate about their role in Healthcare. Julie Waddell, a product owner for Accuro Care Pricer and Jaima Pravel, the director of PFS for Houston Northwest Medical Center, gave us a glimpse into what they are partnering to accomplish at Houston Northwest Medical Center. They shared ideas, techniques and processes that

might be applied across a broad spectrum of provider types. It was evident from their presentation that these two women had successfully partnered to accomplish some noteworthy results in time of service collections, as well as reducing re-

lated credit balances. This presentation was impressive and informative and as a bonus, we discovered that these two gals make time for fam-ily and are considered by some ( their children) to be very

cool mom’s! If you missed our ASI, you might want to seek out someone who attended to see if they will share their seminar notes. It will be worth the effort and next year- well, we will see you

there.

Reported by Marji Henry

Overall Rating by the Attendees: 4.5

Comments by Attendees: • Energetic duo – good for first session of day; very

knowledgeable and relevant

• Both ladies were very knowledgeable and had good

info; would like to have gotten their business cards

• Would like more info/materials that I could read;

overall great presentation.

• It barely scratched the surface of what I need. It’s a

great topic and I’d like to see it on the agenda again

with more “how to” operational issues

• Great Job!

Patient Access Improvement Initiatives Mark Richardson, CPAM, Stockamp & Associates, Joe Moore, Scott &

White and Bob Reed, Parkland Health and Hospital System

DEAL

!



• Bob was great and energetic

• Good material to know

• Bob Reed excellent on all areas!

• Nice variety of speakers

• Bob’s material was practical and well presented

• Joe – great presentation Bill Eikost and Misty Morris

Liz Rushing, Becky Turner, Katie Pederson


Benefactor

Brent Parrish + Julie Shaw 800-872-1818

Donor


Defensible Pricing and Hidden Revenue Strategies Mike Reppart from Hendrick Health System and Christine De Gree

DEAL

!

Debbie Teesdale, Judith Spunaugle, Laura Wendt,

Kyle Cole

Jorge Fernandez, Alice Sands, Terry Sánchez Allison,

Leah Jane Taglienti

The presentation was a very interesting one and touched on many facets necessary for all hospitals that are facing putting a price list out on the intranet for all consumers to consult before scheduling a proce-dure. Craneware may be used by the facility to update the CDM at proper intervals making it easier to place this in front of consumers who may not be able to understand the technicality in the language of the price list.

Reported by Leah Jane Taglienti, Methodist Hospital


• Excellent presentation and relevant materials we can use!

• Good information!

• Great visual material

• Best of the morning presentations; very even knowledge and pres-

entation skills.

• Good material


Donor

Fred Faller (630) 916-8818x261 [email protected]

Updating My Tool Kit: Amy I Marketable? Mike Lindsay from Witt Keiffer

Overall Rating by Attendees: 4.2

Comments by the Attendees:

• He knows his stuff! Good info!

• Very informative and excellent presentation, honest

and very pragmatic.

• Loved it.

• Information was very generic.

• Good tips!

• Great!

• Might have been helpful to discuss creating or recre-

ating our marketability.

• Learned some good info.

• Enjoyed speaker; mice balance with rest of pro-

gram; promoting yourself is good to know

DEAL

!

Deal or No Deal:

ASI Snapshots

Utilizing Proven Technologies in Patient Access Neal Smith from Cardon Healthcare Network and Gerard Hebert from Natchitoches Parish Hospital

Overall Rating by the Attendees: 4.4 Comments by the Attendees:

• Gerard Hebert did a very good job. Neal Smith is an

excellent presenter!

• Great presentation!

• Very good info.

• Really prepared! Great speaker; loved

having the material at hand. DEAL

!

Alan Spiegelhauer and the magician from Esther’s Follies

Gerard Hebert and Neil Smith

During this session Neal discussed some amazing statistics re-garding under/uninsured. I think we all know there is a challenge there in the patient financial arena; however, Neal was truly able to show “proven” technologies and had Gerard to vouch for them! I was most impressed by the fact these systems and strategies have been available all along. Using automated tools helps you to determine correct data for the patient as well as to qualify the patient in terms of his/her willingness to pay to en-sure the correct classification of bad debt versus charity care. He also emphasized tr importance of data integrity to avoid callenges such as teturned mail and duplicate medical records. I was shocked to see in his handout that a single facilty could have duplication error rates of 9-11% while a mulit-facility system

could be as high as 30%! This technology is a deal in my book!

Reported by Angie Box, HRA

newsletter iss 6 tsa - aaham chapter

Documents