Veralon Views Blog

The Veralon Views blog is an extension of our partnership with leaders who are transforming the healthcare industry. Here, we share expert perspectives from our nationally recognized senior consulting team on issues that are key to the success of your organization.

Making Sense of the Ever-Changing Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

by Karin Chernoff Kaplan, Director,
and Richard Chasinoff, Principal
and Jack Lacy, Senior Associate

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By now you’ve probably read (whether published by Veralon or another source) that there were significant changes made to the 2021 Medicare physician fee schedule (PFS). The entire program was originally intended to be budget neutral, but reimbursement was restructured to increase payments to cognitive specialties (such as primary care and other medical specialties) and […]

5 Key Benefits of a Service Line Management Structure

by Lynda Mischel, Principal
and Meredith Inniger, Manager

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Often service lines are just a marketing tool, branding assorted practices as a specialty service line without connecting the services in a meaningful way. By establishing a management structure for service lines, hospitals and health systems can create an organized system of care for patients to progress smoothly from service to service. As health systems […]

Special Fraud Alert: Speaker Programs

by Karin Chernoff Kaplan, Director
and Monica Nuñez, Manager

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In November 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a Special Fraud Alert related to speaker programs sponsored by pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Specifically, the Alert centered on the OIG’s significant and longstanding concerns regarding fraud and abuse risks associated with remuneration for such programs. Speaker programs—events […]

Welcome News for Health Care Providers: It’s Not as Bad as You Thought – At Least for Now

by Karin Chernoff Kaplan, Director
and Richard Chasinoff, Principal

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In the final days of 2020, Congress passed, and the President signed into law, the latest coronavirus relief package. This additional round of COVID relief legislation contains welcome news for health care providers: a one-time, one-year increase to physician fee schedule payments for 2021. The legislation creates a 3.75 percent increase in Medicare Physician Fee […]

Taking Virtual Meetings to the Next Level: 7 Tips for Facilitation

by John Harris Director
and Meredith Inniger, Manager

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Are you deciding whether to hold a virtual retreat/meeting or to postpone until it can be in person? Virtual retreats can be very effective, preparing your organization for quicker action when the pandemic clears. Remote meetings will continue well into 2021, and maybe beyond as work models and meeting expectations shift. How can you effectively […]

3 Questions Every System Should Answer Following the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective and ASC Payment System Final Rule

by Lynda Mischel, Principal
and Meredith Inniger, Manager

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One of the most impactful final rules released by CMS in recent months is the CY 2021 Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System Final Rule (CMS-1736-FC). This rule includes several important policy changes, most notably the elimination of the Inpatient Only List on a phased schedule through CY2024 (when […]