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January 1 2015
Healthcare
Happenings
Upcoming Events
January 20 2015 Region 8 WebinarmdashPhysician Quality Reporting Programs January 23 2015 Education amp Networking EventmdashUniv of Missouri Alumni Center Columbia MO 100 Kim Duggan MHA and CliftonLarsonAllen presemt 400 Reception February 20 2015 Education amp Networking Eventmdash BKD OfficesmdashSpringfield MO 100 Kim Duggan MHA and BKD presemt 400 Reception May 13mdash15 2015 Spring ConferencemdashRiver City Casino St Louis July 29-31 2015 Show-Me Chapter Summer Conference Camden on the Lake Lake Ozark MO
Inside this issue
Presidentrsquos 4-5
Message
Social Corner 6
CBSC 8
Region 8 9
Update
MHA 11-12
Sponsorship 13
Job Postings 14
Sponsors 15
National HFMA On-Demand Webinar Listing
From the transition to ICD-10 to mergers and acquisitions hospital and health system
CFOs are certainly going to be faced with a myriad of challenges in 2015 Although its
hard to say what the biggest issue in front of financial leaders is there are some common
top concerns on CFOs radars going into next year
According to a poll conducted by Beckers Hospital Review the following are some of
most widely cited CFO concerns
Changing reimbursement levels
About 3400 acute-care hospitals and 435 long-term care hospitals receive payments under
CMS Inpatient Prospective Payment System through which they agree to pre-determined
rates to serve Medicare patients The 2015 IPPS final rule promotes quality of care by en-
acting a 1 percent reimbursement cut for hospitals with the poorest performance (in the
lowest quartile) in reducing hospital-acquired conditions The initiative called the Hospi-
tal-Acquired Condition Reduction Program is mandated by the PPACA
The 2015 final rule also updates the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program another
PPACA initiative which adjusts IPPS payments based on quality of care In 2014 CMS
took back 125 percent of Medicare payments to hospitals through the IPPS and for 2015
the final rule increases the applicable percent reduction to 15 percent
The 2015 final rule cuts overall Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments by 13
(cont on page 2)
Hospital CFOrsquos Top Concerns for 2015 By Ayla Ellison
Register Online
A new year means the Show-Me
Chapter Sponsorship program
starts over If you havenrsquot secured
your sponsorship see page 12
Register Online
Register Online
Follow Show-Me on Linked In
by clicking
Healthcare Happenings Page 2
(cont from page 1)
percent in fiscal year 2015 compared to 2014 In addition under the PPACA Medicare DSH payments will be
reduced by 75 percent by 2019 or $499 billion
Along with changes in Medicare reimbursement changes in PPO and HMO reimbursement levels have hospital
CFOs concerned If PPO and HMO reimbursement continues in the direction of Medicare-like rates some CFOs
fear hospitals last line of business with some level of reasonable margins will be eliminated
Uncertainty of PPACA payment reform models
The passage of the PPACA remains highly politicized and with a number of challenges to the health reform laws
provisions along with the possibility of a Republican president in 2016 some CFOs wonder if payment initiatives
such as bundled payments will even be on the table in the future
Traditionally government healthcare programs and private payers made separate payments to healthcare providers
for each service they performed during a single course of treatment However the bundled payments approach ndasha
PPACA payment reform model ndash has gained popularity
Under the bundled payment approach hospitals physicians and other providers involved in patient care share a
fixed payment that covers the average cost of a bundle of services With the aim of lowering healthcare costs
bundled payments encourage collaboration between all types of care providers including primary care physicians
and specialists The approach also provides more price transparency
The transition to ICD-10
When the official ICD-10 transition date was pushed back a year to Oct 1 2015 it gave hospital financial leaders
more time to assess the costs associated with the transition
According to a report funded by the American Medical Association the estimated cost of the ICD-10 transition var-
ies widely based on practice size For small practices estimates range from $56639 to $226105 For medium-sized
practices the cost range is $213264 to $824735 and for large practices the range is roughly $2 million to more
than $8 million
Although the actual cost of the transition is a major concern for CFOs some financial leaders are concerned about
indirect costs of the ICD-10 transition as well Michael J Koziol CPA senior vice president and CFO of
(cont on page 3)
Healthcare Happenings Page 3
(cont from page 2)
MaineGeneral Health in Augusta says We have a number of physician practices and I am concerned about the
productivity loss that will occur with the change
Consolidation in healthcare
With the shifting healthcare environment mergers and acquisitions are certainly on the top of CFOs minds Hospi-
tal and health system CFOs have to examine potential deals to determine if they make sense from strategic and fi-
nancial perspectives
The pressure to enter into these transactions is especially great for CFOs of independent hospitals With the tech-
nology investments hospitals and health systems are required to make and the quality of care they must provide to
survive in the new healthcare environment many independent hospitals are evaluating whether they need a merger
partner
The changing CFO role
With hospitals more focused on improving quality of care while lowering healthcare costs hospital CFOs must
understand the costs that drive value and quality
In addition the hospital CFO role is also becoming more strategic with hospital financial leaders more focused on
business decisions and strategy than ever before By working with physicians CFOs are pushing for efficient care
to help ensure the financial stability of their hospital or health system which causes some CFOs concern as they
are branching out into unfamiliar territory
Taken from Beckerrsquos HealthcareBeckerrsquos CFO Report httpwwwbeckershospitalreviewcomfinancehospital-cfos-top-
concerns-for-2015html
copy Copyright ASC COMMUNICATIONS 2014 Interested in LINKING to or REPRINTING this content View our policies
by clicking here
Show-Me Chapter has a new website
Check out upcoming events pictures
from previous events links to
information and see how you can get
involved to help ldquoLead the Changerdquo
NEW WEBSITE
Presidentrsquos Message mdash HFMA Is Your Partner Through Change By Jon Branstetter
Healthcare Happenings Page 4
I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday Season The Show-Me Chapter has had a busy three months We officially launched our new website during October Please take some time to browse our new website at httpwwwhfmashowmeorg I want to thank Kyle Lee and David Taylor for all of their hard work in getting this new website implemented Please let Kyle Lee or David Taylor know if you have any recommendations for the website I also want to acknowledge Kalon Mitchell with MedTranDirect for all of the work that his company has done maintaining our previous website
We are making progress on our Chapter Balanced Scorecard goals that we are graded on as a chapter by National HFMA We had several successful education events in the past quarter
with our Joint Fall Conference in Blue Springs MO and our annual education event at the Missouri Hospital Asso-ciation Convention I want to thank all of those that helped plan attend and sponsor those events Currently we are at 144 hours of education per member or almost 89 of the way to our goal of 162 hours of education per member In an effort to start bringing education and networking opportunities closer to our members we are unveiling road-shows in January and February 2015 In the past quarter our chapter conducted a survey to help us determine the location for the upcoming roadshows The most popular responses were Columbia and Springfield Our first road-show will be on Friday January 23 2015 at the University of Missouri Alumni Center including an education ses-sion from 1-4 PM with a networking immediately following the education sessions The speakers will include a presentation from CliftonLarsonAllen with an industry update along with Kim Duggan from the Missouri Hospital Association Kim Duggan will be presenting on the Medicaid program including rate setting how the Federal Re-imbursement Allowance (FRA) program works and various other information specific to the Medicaid program This looks to be a very timely education event especially for those that have to complete the 2012 Disproportionate Share Hospital Audit and have a settlement from a 2011 DSH Audit in the upcoming months I hope if you are near Columbia that you are able to attend this educational and networking event Our second roadshow will be in Springfield on Friday February 20 2015 at the BKD offices following the same format as the educational session in Columbia The education session will be from 1-4 PM and will include an in-dustry update from BKD and a Medicaid update by Kim Duggan with Missouri Hospital Association There will be an opportunity for networking following the education event at 4PM I hope if you are near the Springfield area that you will be able to attend this timely educational and networking event I want to thank Jean Nyberg and Josh Wilks for all of their hard work planning these upcoming roadshows Please look for more information forthcom-ing on these roadshows In the meantime if you have any questions about the roadshows please con-tact Jean or Josh
I realize that the winter months are a difficult time for travel and being away from the office please take advantage of the On-demand webinars at Na-tionalrsquos HFMA website Most of these webinars are free for HFMA members and include topics such as accounting amp financial reporting finance amp business (cont on page 5)
Please contact Jennifer Ogden with suggestions news items or article submissions JenniferOgdenHealthportcom
Healthcare Happenings Page 5
(cont from page 4)
strategy legal amp regulatory compliance operations management payment reimbursement amp managed care reve-nue cycle and technology These webinars are a great way to stay on top of industry trends and changes
Region 8 also provides monthly webinars to our members The free January webinar will be on January 20th from 12-130 PM with the latest information on the Physician Quality Reporting Programs Please click here for more information regarding this webinar The Show-Me chapter will be presenting its Region 8 webinar on March 17th I am looking forward to this webinar as Shelly Hunter will be speaking on the recovery from the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in 2011 and the opening of the new Mercy Hospital in Joplin
Please look at the Show-Me Chapterrsquos website for a list of our upcoming educational events at httpwwwhfmashowmeorglive-educational-programs Our Joint Spring Conference will be at an exciting new venue this year at the River City Casino in St Louis on May 13-15th The Show-Me Chapterrsquos annual summer conference will be at Camden on the Lake again from July 29-31st Please mark these dates on your calendar and I hope you will be able to attend these events in the upcoming year
Also be on the lookout for the upcoming officer and board of director ballot in late January or February 2015 If you are interested in becoming an officer board member committee chairperson or a committee member please let Kyle Lee Susan Duncan or myself know Becoming involved in the local HFMA chapter is a great way to im-prove your leadership and communication skills and gain networking opportunities at a national level through the annual Leadership Training Conference and Annual National Institute (ANI)
On another note it was devastating to hear about the recent massacre of children at the school in Pakistan where 132 children were killed This event reminded me of our inspirational speaker at the Leadership Training Confer-ence this year in National Harbor Maryland where Adam Braun founder of Pencils of Promise spoke about his
organization Pencils of Promise is a for-purpose or-ganization that helps provide access to quality educa-tion to those unfortunate children in Southeast Asia Africa and South America It only takes $250 to edu-cate a child $500 to train a teacher or $25000 to build a school If you would like to join HFMArsquos efforts in attempt to get a school built in HFMArsquos name please use the following link for more information httpsfundraisepencilsofpromiseorgfundraisefcid=328385 It is truly amazing to see the difference this organization makes with providing education for those children that are less fortunate
Lastly I want to thank all of our members board direc-tors officers and sponsors for all of their support to the Show-Me Chapter Please let us know if you would like to become more involved in our chapter I hope to see you all soon at upcoming educational events I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and successful 2015 Jon
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Follow Show-Me on Linked In
by clicking
Healthcare Happenings Page 2
(cont from page 1)
percent in fiscal year 2015 compared to 2014 In addition under the PPACA Medicare DSH payments will be
reduced by 75 percent by 2019 or $499 billion
Along with changes in Medicare reimbursement changes in PPO and HMO reimbursement levels have hospital
CFOs concerned If PPO and HMO reimbursement continues in the direction of Medicare-like rates some CFOs
fear hospitals last line of business with some level of reasonable margins will be eliminated
Uncertainty of PPACA payment reform models
The passage of the PPACA remains highly politicized and with a number of challenges to the health reform laws
provisions along with the possibility of a Republican president in 2016 some CFOs wonder if payment initiatives
such as bundled payments will even be on the table in the future
Traditionally government healthcare programs and private payers made separate payments to healthcare providers
for each service they performed during a single course of treatment However the bundled payments approach ndasha
PPACA payment reform model ndash has gained popularity
Under the bundled payment approach hospitals physicians and other providers involved in patient care share a
fixed payment that covers the average cost of a bundle of services With the aim of lowering healthcare costs
bundled payments encourage collaboration between all types of care providers including primary care physicians
and specialists The approach also provides more price transparency
The transition to ICD-10
When the official ICD-10 transition date was pushed back a year to Oct 1 2015 it gave hospital financial leaders
more time to assess the costs associated with the transition
According to a report funded by the American Medical Association the estimated cost of the ICD-10 transition var-
ies widely based on practice size For small practices estimates range from $56639 to $226105 For medium-sized
practices the cost range is $213264 to $824735 and for large practices the range is roughly $2 million to more
than $8 million
Although the actual cost of the transition is a major concern for CFOs some financial leaders are concerned about
indirect costs of the ICD-10 transition as well Michael J Koziol CPA senior vice president and CFO of
(cont on page 3)
Healthcare Happenings Page 3
(cont from page 2)
MaineGeneral Health in Augusta says We have a number of physician practices and I am concerned about the
productivity loss that will occur with the change
Consolidation in healthcare
With the shifting healthcare environment mergers and acquisitions are certainly on the top of CFOs minds Hospi-
tal and health system CFOs have to examine potential deals to determine if they make sense from strategic and fi-
nancial perspectives
The pressure to enter into these transactions is especially great for CFOs of independent hospitals With the tech-
nology investments hospitals and health systems are required to make and the quality of care they must provide to
survive in the new healthcare environment many independent hospitals are evaluating whether they need a merger
partner
The changing CFO role
With hospitals more focused on improving quality of care while lowering healthcare costs hospital CFOs must
understand the costs that drive value and quality
In addition the hospital CFO role is also becoming more strategic with hospital financial leaders more focused on
business decisions and strategy than ever before By working with physicians CFOs are pushing for efficient care
to help ensure the financial stability of their hospital or health system which causes some CFOs concern as they
are branching out into unfamiliar territory
Taken from Beckerrsquos HealthcareBeckerrsquos CFO Report httpwwwbeckershospitalreviewcomfinancehospital-cfos-top-
concerns-for-2015html
copy Copyright ASC COMMUNICATIONS 2014 Interested in LINKING to or REPRINTING this content View our policies
by clicking here
Show-Me Chapter has a new website
Check out upcoming events pictures
from previous events links to
information and see how you can get
involved to help ldquoLead the Changerdquo
NEW WEBSITE
Presidentrsquos Message mdash HFMA Is Your Partner Through Change By Jon Branstetter
Healthcare Happenings Page 4
I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday Season The Show-Me Chapter has had a busy three months We officially launched our new website during October Please take some time to browse our new website at httpwwwhfmashowmeorg I want to thank Kyle Lee and David Taylor for all of their hard work in getting this new website implemented Please let Kyle Lee or David Taylor know if you have any recommendations for the website I also want to acknowledge Kalon Mitchell with MedTranDirect for all of the work that his company has done maintaining our previous website
We are making progress on our Chapter Balanced Scorecard goals that we are graded on as a chapter by National HFMA We had several successful education events in the past quarter
with our Joint Fall Conference in Blue Springs MO and our annual education event at the Missouri Hospital Asso-ciation Convention I want to thank all of those that helped plan attend and sponsor those events Currently we are at 144 hours of education per member or almost 89 of the way to our goal of 162 hours of education per member In an effort to start bringing education and networking opportunities closer to our members we are unveiling road-shows in January and February 2015 In the past quarter our chapter conducted a survey to help us determine the location for the upcoming roadshows The most popular responses were Columbia and Springfield Our first road-show will be on Friday January 23 2015 at the University of Missouri Alumni Center including an education ses-sion from 1-4 PM with a networking immediately following the education sessions The speakers will include a presentation from CliftonLarsonAllen with an industry update along with Kim Duggan from the Missouri Hospital Association Kim Duggan will be presenting on the Medicaid program including rate setting how the Federal Re-imbursement Allowance (FRA) program works and various other information specific to the Medicaid program This looks to be a very timely education event especially for those that have to complete the 2012 Disproportionate Share Hospital Audit and have a settlement from a 2011 DSH Audit in the upcoming months I hope if you are near Columbia that you are able to attend this educational and networking event Our second roadshow will be in Springfield on Friday February 20 2015 at the BKD offices following the same format as the educational session in Columbia The education session will be from 1-4 PM and will include an in-dustry update from BKD and a Medicaid update by Kim Duggan with Missouri Hospital Association There will be an opportunity for networking following the education event at 4PM I hope if you are near the Springfield area that you will be able to attend this timely educational and networking event I want to thank Jean Nyberg and Josh Wilks for all of their hard work planning these upcoming roadshows Please look for more information forthcom-ing on these roadshows In the meantime if you have any questions about the roadshows please con-tact Jean or Josh
I realize that the winter months are a difficult time for travel and being away from the office please take advantage of the On-demand webinars at Na-tionalrsquos HFMA website Most of these webinars are free for HFMA members and include topics such as accounting amp financial reporting finance amp business (cont on page 5)
Please contact Jennifer Ogden with suggestions news items or article submissions JenniferOgdenHealthportcom
Healthcare Happenings Page 5
(cont from page 4)
strategy legal amp regulatory compliance operations management payment reimbursement amp managed care reve-nue cycle and technology These webinars are a great way to stay on top of industry trends and changes
Region 8 also provides monthly webinars to our members The free January webinar will be on January 20th from 12-130 PM with the latest information on the Physician Quality Reporting Programs Please click here for more information regarding this webinar The Show-Me chapter will be presenting its Region 8 webinar on March 17th I am looking forward to this webinar as Shelly Hunter will be speaking on the recovery from the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in 2011 and the opening of the new Mercy Hospital in Joplin
Please look at the Show-Me Chapterrsquos website for a list of our upcoming educational events at httpwwwhfmashowmeorglive-educational-programs Our Joint Spring Conference will be at an exciting new venue this year at the River City Casino in St Louis on May 13-15th The Show-Me Chapterrsquos annual summer conference will be at Camden on the Lake again from July 29-31st Please mark these dates on your calendar and I hope you will be able to attend these events in the upcoming year
Also be on the lookout for the upcoming officer and board of director ballot in late January or February 2015 If you are interested in becoming an officer board member committee chairperson or a committee member please let Kyle Lee Susan Duncan or myself know Becoming involved in the local HFMA chapter is a great way to im-prove your leadership and communication skills and gain networking opportunities at a national level through the annual Leadership Training Conference and Annual National Institute (ANI)
On another note it was devastating to hear about the recent massacre of children at the school in Pakistan where 132 children were killed This event reminded me of our inspirational speaker at the Leadership Training Confer-ence this year in National Harbor Maryland where Adam Braun founder of Pencils of Promise spoke about his
organization Pencils of Promise is a for-purpose or-ganization that helps provide access to quality educa-tion to those unfortunate children in Southeast Asia Africa and South America It only takes $250 to edu-cate a child $500 to train a teacher or $25000 to build a school If you would like to join HFMArsquos efforts in attempt to get a school built in HFMArsquos name please use the following link for more information httpsfundraisepencilsofpromiseorgfundraisefcid=328385 It is truly amazing to see the difference this organization makes with providing education for those children that are less fortunate
Lastly I want to thank all of our members board direc-tors officers and sponsors for all of their support to the Show-Me Chapter Please let us know if you would like to become more involved in our chapter I hope to see you all soon at upcoming educational events I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and successful 2015 Jon
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings Page 3
(cont from page 2)
MaineGeneral Health in Augusta says We have a number of physician practices and I am concerned about the
productivity loss that will occur with the change
Consolidation in healthcare
With the shifting healthcare environment mergers and acquisitions are certainly on the top of CFOs minds Hospi-
tal and health system CFOs have to examine potential deals to determine if they make sense from strategic and fi-
nancial perspectives
The pressure to enter into these transactions is especially great for CFOs of independent hospitals With the tech-
nology investments hospitals and health systems are required to make and the quality of care they must provide to
survive in the new healthcare environment many independent hospitals are evaluating whether they need a merger
partner
The changing CFO role
With hospitals more focused on improving quality of care while lowering healthcare costs hospital CFOs must
understand the costs that drive value and quality
In addition the hospital CFO role is also becoming more strategic with hospital financial leaders more focused on
business decisions and strategy than ever before By working with physicians CFOs are pushing for efficient care
to help ensure the financial stability of their hospital or health system which causes some CFOs concern as they
are branching out into unfamiliar territory
Taken from Beckerrsquos HealthcareBeckerrsquos CFO Report httpwwwbeckershospitalreviewcomfinancehospital-cfos-top-
concerns-for-2015html
copy Copyright ASC COMMUNICATIONS 2014 Interested in LINKING to or REPRINTING this content View our policies
by clicking here
Show-Me Chapter has a new website
Check out upcoming events pictures
from previous events links to
information and see how you can get
involved to help ldquoLead the Changerdquo
NEW WEBSITE
Presidentrsquos Message mdash HFMA Is Your Partner Through Change By Jon Branstetter
Healthcare Happenings Page 4
I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday Season The Show-Me Chapter has had a busy three months We officially launched our new website during October Please take some time to browse our new website at httpwwwhfmashowmeorg I want to thank Kyle Lee and David Taylor for all of their hard work in getting this new website implemented Please let Kyle Lee or David Taylor know if you have any recommendations for the website I also want to acknowledge Kalon Mitchell with MedTranDirect for all of the work that his company has done maintaining our previous website
We are making progress on our Chapter Balanced Scorecard goals that we are graded on as a chapter by National HFMA We had several successful education events in the past quarter
with our Joint Fall Conference in Blue Springs MO and our annual education event at the Missouri Hospital Asso-ciation Convention I want to thank all of those that helped plan attend and sponsor those events Currently we are at 144 hours of education per member or almost 89 of the way to our goal of 162 hours of education per member In an effort to start bringing education and networking opportunities closer to our members we are unveiling road-shows in January and February 2015 In the past quarter our chapter conducted a survey to help us determine the location for the upcoming roadshows The most popular responses were Columbia and Springfield Our first road-show will be on Friday January 23 2015 at the University of Missouri Alumni Center including an education ses-sion from 1-4 PM with a networking immediately following the education sessions The speakers will include a presentation from CliftonLarsonAllen with an industry update along with Kim Duggan from the Missouri Hospital Association Kim Duggan will be presenting on the Medicaid program including rate setting how the Federal Re-imbursement Allowance (FRA) program works and various other information specific to the Medicaid program This looks to be a very timely education event especially for those that have to complete the 2012 Disproportionate Share Hospital Audit and have a settlement from a 2011 DSH Audit in the upcoming months I hope if you are near Columbia that you are able to attend this educational and networking event Our second roadshow will be in Springfield on Friday February 20 2015 at the BKD offices following the same format as the educational session in Columbia The education session will be from 1-4 PM and will include an in-dustry update from BKD and a Medicaid update by Kim Duggan with Missouri Hospital Association There will be an opportunity for networking following the education event at 4PM I hope if you are near the Springfield area that you will be able to attend this timely educational and networking event I want to thank Jean Nyberg and Josh Wilks for all of their hard work planning these upcoming roadshows Please look for more information forthcom-ing on these roadshows In the meantime if you have any questions about the roadshows please con-tact Jean or Josh
I realize that the winter months are a difficult time for travel and being away from the office please take advantage of the On-demand webinars at Na-tionalrsquos HFMA website Most of these webinars are free for HFMA members and include topics such as accounting amp financial reporting finance amp business (cont on page 5)
Please contact Jennifer Ogden with suggestions news items or article submissions JenniferOgdenHealthportcom
Healthcare Happenings Page 5
(cont from page 4)
strategy legal amp regulatory compliance operations management payment reimbursement amp managed care reve-nue cycle and technology These webinars are a great way to stay on top of industry trends and changes
Region 8 also provides monthly webinars to our members The free January webinar will be on January 20th from 12-130 PM with the latest information on the Physician Quality Reporting Programs Please click here for more information regarding this webinar The Show-Me chapter will be presenting its Region 8 webinar on March 17th I am looking forward to this webinar as Shelly Hunter will be speaking on the recovery from the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in 2011 and the opening of the new Mercy Hospital in Joplin
Please look at the Show-Me Chapterrsquos website for a list of our upcoming educational events at httpwwwhfmashowmeorglive-educational-programs Our Joint Spring Conference will be at an exciting new venue this year at the River City Casino in St Louis on May 13-15th The Show-Me Chapterrsquos annual summer conference will be at Camden on the Lake again from July 29-31st Please mark these dates on your calendar and I hope you will be able to attend these events in the upcoming year
Also be on the lookout for the upcoming officer and board of director ballot in late January or February 2015 If you are interested in becoming an officer board member committee chairperson or a committee member please let Kyle Lee Susan Duncan or myself know Becoming involved in the local HFMA chapter is a great way to im-prove your leadership and communication skills and gain networking opportunities at a national level through the annual Leadership Training Conference and Annual National Institute (ANI)
On another note it was devastating to hear about the recent massacre of children at the school in Pakistan where 132 children were killed This event reminded me of our inspirational speaker at the Leadership Training Confer-ence this year in National Harbor Maryland where Adam Braun founder of Pencils of Promise spoke about his
organization Pencils of Promise is a for-purpose or-ganization that helps provide access to quality educa-tion to those unfortunate children in Southeast Asia Africa and South America It only takes $250 to edu-cate a child $500 to train a teacher or $25000 to build a school If you would like to join HFMArsquos efforts in attempt to get a school built in HFMArsquos name please use the following link for more information httpsfundraisepencilsofpromiseorgfundraisefcid=328385 It is truly amazing to see the difference this organization makes with providing education for those children that are less fortunate
Lastly I want to thank all of our members board direc-tors officers and sponsors for all of their support to the Show-Me Chapter Please let us know if you would like to become more involved in our chapter I hope to see you all soon at upcoming educational events I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and successful 2015 Jon
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Presidentrsquos Message mdash HFMA Is Your Partner Through Change By Jon Branstetter
Healthcare Happenings Page 4
I hope everyone had a Happy Holiday Season The Show-Me Chapter has had a busy three months We officially launched our new website during October Please take some time to browse our new website at httpwwwhfmashowmeorg I want to thank Kyle Lee and David Taylor for all of their hard work in getting this new website implemented Please let Kyle Lee or David Taylor know if you have any recommendations for the website I also want to acknowledge Kalon Mitchell with MedTranDirect for all of the work that his company has done maintaining our previous website
We are making progress on our Chapter Balanced Scorecard goals that we are graded on as a chapter by National HFMA We had several successful education events in the past quarter
with our Joint Fall Conference in Blue Springs MO and our annual education event at the Missouri Hospital Asso-ciation Convention I want to thank all of those that helped plan attend and sponsor those events Currently we are at 144 hours of education per member or almost 89 of the way to our goal of 162 hours of education per member In an effort to start bringing education and networking opportunities closer to our members we are unveiling road-shows in January and February 2015 In the past quarter our chapter conducted a survey to help us determine the location for the upcoming roadshows The most popular responses were Columbia and Springfield Our first road-show will be on Friday January 23 2015 at the University of Missouri Alumni Center including an education ses-sion from 1-4 PM with a networking immediately following the education sessions The speakers will include a presentation from CliftonLarsonAllen with an industry update along with Kim Duggan from the Missouri Hospital Association Kim Duggan will be presenting on the Medicaid program including rate setting how the Federal Re-imbursement Allowance (FRA) program works and various other information specific to the Medicaid program This looks to be a very timely education event especially for those that have to complete the 2012 Disproportionate Share Hospital Audit and have a settlement from a 2011 DSH Audit in the upcoming months I hope if you are near Columbia that you are able to attend this educational and networking event Our second roadshow will be in Springfield on Friday February 20 2015 at the BKD offices following the same format as the educational session in Columbia The education session will be from 1-4 PM and will include an in-dustry update from BKD and a Medicaid update by Kim Duggan with Missouri Hospital Association There will be an opportunity for networking following the education event at 4PM I hope if you are near the Springfield area that you will be able to attend this timely educational and networking event I want to thank Jean Nyberg and Josh Wilks for all of their hard work planning these upcoming roadshows Please look for more information forthcom-ing on these roadshows In the meantime if you have any questions about the roadshows please con-tact Jean or Josh
I realize that the winter months are a difficult time for travel and being away from the office please take advantage of the On-demand webinars at Na-tionalrsquos HFMA website Most of these webinars are free for HFMA members and include topics such as accounting amp financial reporting finance amp business (cont on page 5)
Please contact Jennifer Ogden with suggestions news items or article submissions JenniferOgdenHealthportcom
Healthcare Happenings Page 5
(cont from page 4)
strategy legal amp regulatory compliance operations management payment reimbursement amp managed care reve-nue cycle and technology These webinars are a great way to stay on top of industry trends and changes
Region 8 also provides monthly webinars to our members The free January webinar will be on January 20th from 12-130 PM with the latest information on the Physician Quality Reporting Programs Please click here for more information regarding this webinar The Show-Me chapter will be presenting its Region 8 webinar on March 17th I am looking forward to this webinar as Shelly Hunter will be speaking on the recovery from the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in 2011 and the opening of the new Mercy Hospital in Joplin
Please look at the Show-Me Chapterrsquos website for a list of our upcoming educational events at httpwwwhfmashowmeorglive-educational-programs Our Joint Spring Conference will be at an exciting new venue this year at the River City Casino in St Louis on May 13-15th The Show-Me Chapterrsquos annual summer conference will be at Camden on the Lake again from July 29-31st Please mark these dates on your calendar and I hope you will be able to attend these events in the upcoming year
Also be on the lookout for the upcoming officer and board of director ballot in late January or February 2015 If you are interested in becoming an officer board member committee chairperson or a committee member please let Kyle Lee Susan Duncan or myself know Becoming involved in the local HFMA chapter is a great way to im-prove your leadership and communication skills and gain networking opportunities at a national level through the annual Leadership Training Conference and Annual National Institute (ANI)
On another note it was devastating to hear about the recent massacre of children at the school in Pakistan where 132 children were killed This event reminded me of our inspirational speaker at the Leadership Training Confer-ence this year in National Harbor Maryland where Adam Braun founder of Pencils of Promise spoke about his
organization Pencils of Promise is a for-purpose or-ganization that helps provide access to quality educa-tion to those unfortunate children in Southeast Asia Africa and South America It only takes $250 to edu-cate a child $500 to train a teacher or $25000 to build a school If you would like to join HFMArsquos efforts in attempt to get a school built in HFMArsquos name please use the following link for more information httpsfundraisepencilsofpromiseorgfundraisefcid=328385 It is truly amazing to see the difference this organization makes with providing education for those children that are less fortunate
Lastly I want to thank all of our members board direc-tors officers and sponsors for all of their support to the Show-Me Chapter Please let us know if you would like to become more involved in our chapter I hope to see you all soon at upcoming educational events I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and successful 2015 Jon
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Please contact Jennifer Ogden with suggestions news items or article submissions JenniferOgdenHealthportcom
Healthcare Happenings Page 5
(cont from page 4)
strategy legal amp regulatory compliance operations management payment reimbursement amp managed care reve-nue cycle and technology These webinars are a great way to stay on top of industry trends and changes
Region 8 also provides monthly webinars to our members The free January webinar will be on January 20th from 12-130 PM with the latest information on the Physician Quality Reporting Programs Please click here for more information regarding this webinar The Show-Me chapter will be presenting its Region 8 webinar on March 17th I am looking forward to this webinar as Shelly Hunter will be speaking on the recovery from the aftermath of the Joplin tornado in 2011 and the opening of the new Mercy Hospital in Joplin
Please look at the Show-Me Chapterrsquos website for a list of our upcoming educational events at httpwwwhfmashowmeorglive-educational-programs Our Joint Spring Conference will be at an exciting new venue this year at the River City Casino in St Louis on May 13-15th The Show-Me Chapterrsquos annual summer conference will be at Camden on the Lake again from July 29-31st Please mark these dates on your calendar and I hope you will be able to attend these events in the upcoming year
Also be on the lookout for the upcoming officer and board of director ballot in late January or February 2015 If you are interested in becoming an officer board member committee chairperson or a committee member please let Kyle Lee Susan Duncan or myself know Becoming involved in the local HFMA chapter is a great way to im-prove your leadership and communication skills and gain networking opportunities at a national level through the annual Leadership Training Conference and Annual National Institute (ANI)
On another note it was devastating to hear about the recent massacre of children at the school in Pakistan where 132 children were killed This event reminded me of our inspirational speaker at the Leadership Training Confer-ence this year in National Harbor Maryland where Adam Braun founder of Pencils of Promise spoke about his
organization Pencils of Promise is a for-purpose or-ganization that helps provide access to quality educa-tion to those unfortunate children in Southeast Asia Africa and South America It only takes $250 to edu-cate a child $500 to train a teacher or $25000 to build a school If you would like to join HFMArsquos efforts in attempt to get a school built in HFMArsquos name please use the following link for more information httpsfundraisepencilsofpromiseorgfundraisefcid=328385 It is truly amazing to see the difference this organization makes with providing education for those children that are less fortunate
Lastly I want to thank all of our members board direc-tors officers and sponsors for all of their support to the Show-Me Chapter Please let us know if you would like to become more involved in our chapter I hope to see you all soon at upcoming educational events I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and successful 2015 Jon
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings Page 6
Click Here to access our new photo gallery Social Corner mdash Fall Conference
The Fall Conference included great edu-cational sessions a murder mystery din-ner networking and even catching the World Series
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Jean Nyberg
Diamond Level Sponsor
Healthcare Happenings Page 7
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings Page 8
Calling all Members The Show-Me Chapter needs your helpmdashif you are not currently on a committee and would like to helpmdashin any waymdashwe would love to have you on a committee Whether you are interested in helping plan events or just volun-teer to proofread brochures or newsletters every contribution helps It takes a TEAM to make a chapter success-ful and we have a terrific one So make it your resolution to get more involvedmdashyou will be glad you did The Chapter Balance Scorecard measures activity from May 1 2014 ndash April 30 2015 Goals are established by National HFMA each year to ensure consistent performance at the local chapter level We have been an award winning chapter the past two years receiving 6 awards at ANI each year Please help the Show-Me Chapter re-main an award winning chapter for the 2014-2015 year by helping us meet our goals for education membership and certification To help us meet our membership goal for this year HFMA has started the 2014-2015 Member-Get-A-Member program Click here for more information This year you could win
HFMA Apparel Item duffel bag or smartphone accessory
$25 $100 or $150 Visa Prepaid Cards
Cash prizes of $1000 or $2500
Apple iPad Mini
Grand Prize of $5000
The Apple iPad Mini will be awarded each month and the other prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of this program If you have any questions about the Member-Get-A-Member program please contact Jim Kokkines Membership Manager by e-mail or by calling (800) 252-4362 ext 339 If you have questions about membership in the Show-Me Chapter please contact Bonnie Baker or Kyle Lee
In order to encourage members to become certified the chapter has reinstated its previous certification policy of
reimbursing for study materials for the CHFP exam The chapter will also reimburse for the cost of the exam for
those who are successful in passing In addition those who pass the exam and become certified during the 2014-
2015 year will be entered into a drawing for a future free conference registration
Also if you are already certified please maintain your certification by recording your educational activities at
httpwwwhfmaorgContentaspxid=513
If you have any questions regarding certification please contact Janet Taylor or Jon Branstetter
Actual Goal Education hours 3888 hours 4374 hours 889 of goal met so far Education hours per member 144 hours per member` 162 hours per member 889 of goal met so far Membership 243 members 270 members 90 of goal met so far Certification 20 members certified 22 members certified 909 of goal met so far
Chapter Balanced Scorecard Update
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings
Region 8 Update
By Tracy Packingham
Page 9
Happy New Year As I write this the football season is winding down and the Super Bowl is right around the corner It reminds me of what a great team we have within HFMA ldquoTEAMrdquo Together Everyone Achieves More I believe that TOGETHER we can truly achieve anything Being part of the
HFMA Line Up has been a phenomenal journey that I have had the opportunity to be a part of As I talk with other members officers and colleagues I realize that I am not alone in this reflection The chapter leaders and members of Region 8 make a fabulous team Please reach out and become part of your chapter Regardless of whether you are a sports fan be a fan and love the Association of which we are a member Become a part of a ldquoteamrdquo of dedicated healthcare Professionals ldquoLead the Changerdquo with the constant change we all have talents and contri-butions Not one of us can do it ALL Get involved and make the most out of your membership Thank you for the continued support of all of our officers directors volunteers and members Our chapters are truly exceptional Region 8 ROCKS Tracy Packingham Regional Executive HFMA Region 8
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings
Diamond Level Sponsor
Page 10
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings
2015 FEDERAL AND STATE LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY OUTLOOK
Andrew B Wheeler Vice President of Federal Finance Missouri Hospital Association
Page 11
As the 113th United States Congress ends and the 114th begins ldquoshots across the bowrdquo are already tak-ing place to reform and protect the integrity of the Medicare program The US House of Representa-tives Committee on Ways and Means recently released discussion drafts which have the potential to influence the Medicare program These documents can be used to gain an understanding about what hospitals might be facing in 2015 The Hospital Improvements for Payment Act of 2014 released in November 2014 contains several sec-tions aimed to reform the Medicare program The draft is intended to address nine specific issues in-cluding a new hospital prospective payment system a new per diem rate for short lengths of stay repeal of the two-midnight payment reduction policy make improvements to the recovery audit program and expand access to Medicare data Other proposed sections include retrospective and prospective hospital solutions to address problems in the Medicare appeals process repeal the ldquoObamaCare Bay-State Boon-dogglerdquo and changes to the critical access hospital 96 hour condition of payment provision The Protecting the Integrity of Medicare Act of 2014 also released by Ways and Means as a discussion draft would combat fraud waste and abuse in the Medicare program Sections of PIMA include pre-venting wrongful Medicare payments use of Smart Card technology modifications to face-to-face en-counter documentation requirements reducing improper payments through Medicare administrative contractor outreach and education programs and the renewal of MAC contracts On the federal regulatory front the Internal Revenue Service now has finalized the rule on standards for tax-exempt hospitals regarding financial assistance collection practices and community health needs assessments While the rule finalizes a 2012 proposed rule on financial assistance and a 2013 proposed rule on community health needs assessments several nuances to the rule have changed The changes include
The final rule changes the threshold for translating financial assistance documents into primary lan-guage of those with limited English proficiency A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy and related documents must be translated for each population that exceeds 1000 individ-uals or 5 percent of those likely to be affected by or have an encounter with the hospital which-ever is less The proposed rule included a threshold of 10 percent of the residents of the com-munity served by the hospital
A ldquohospital organizationrdquo is one that operates one or more hospital facilities which is defined as a facility that is required by a state to be licensed registered or similarly recognized as a hospital Multiple buildings operated under a single state license are considered a single facility
Following the language of the federal law no exemptions or exclusions are provided for tax-exempt governmental hospitals
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos omission or error regarding its community health needs assessment will not be viewed as noncompliant if it is minor and either inadvertent or due to reasonable cause and is corrected by the hospital
A tax-exempt hospitalrsquos financial assistance policy must list the providers other than the hospital itself delivering emergency or other medically necessary care in the hospital and specify which providers are covered and not covered by the hospital policy
(Cont on page 12)
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings Page 12
(Cont from page 11)
The final regulations allow a tax-exempt hospital to change the method it uses to determine ldquoamounts generally billedrdquo at any time so long as the change is reflected in the hospitalrsquos finan-cial assistance policy documents
The billing periods specified in the regulation will begin with the first ldquopost-dischargerdquo billing state-ment rather than the first billing statement
A plain language summary of the hospitalrsquos billing policy must be included with one post-discharge written communication Also billing statements must include a notice about the availability of financial assistance and how to get information about the hospitalrsquos financial assistance plan The IRS had previously proposed that a financial assistance policy summary be included with all billing statements and other written communications during the first 120-day billing period
Notice requirements for ldquoextraordinary collection actionsrdquo are narrowed in the final rule
Within the state of Missouri the Missouri Hospital Association will continue to work diligently with community leaders and state officials to decrease Missourirsquos uninsured rate Medicaid transformation will be the cornerstone of MHArsquos advocacy efforts during the 2015 state legislative sessions A key component will be explaining the positive experiences of bordering states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility Results of expansion are starting to surface contributing to marked improvements in payer mix utilization trends and reduction in uncompensated care expenses Recently Arkansas Hospital As-sociation in conjunction with the Arkansas Chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Associa-tion released a document illustrating the major effects of Medicaid expansion on their hospitals Ac-cording to the report uninsured admissions have decreased more than 46 percent uninsured emergency room visits are down more than 35 percent and uninsured outpatient visits have decreased 36 percent In addition the losses incurred to treat the uninsured in Arkansas have declined by $69 million through June 2014 To date Missourirsquos border states that have expanded coverage include Iowa Illinois Ken-tucky and Arkansas As a nation 27 states and the District of Columbia have all expanded Medicaid coverage with four other states currently considering expansion including Tennessee This now places Missouri in the minority among states Once again MHA will be coordinating its advocacy efforts with a broad coalition of organizations that support Medicaid transformation
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Healthcare Happenings Page 13 Healthcare Happenings
2015 CORPORATE SPONSOR PROGRAM
The Show-Me Chapter would like to offer you the opportunity to participate in our 2015 Corporate Sponsorship Program We host
four conferences per year - the Joint Spring Conference in May with the Greater St Louis Chapter the Show-Me Conference at Lake
Ozark the Fall Conference with both Heart of America and Greater St Louis Chapters and the Region 8 Mid-America Summer Insti-
tute
We continuously strive to provide quality educational events and networking opportunities at a reasonable cost to our members In
order to do this we need the support of our sponsors We have developed our sponsorship program to maximize the effectiveness of
your sponsorship dollars Please let us know if you have suggestions on how to improve our program
Diamond Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (Full page) ($350 value)
Featured sponsor of our Region 8 webinar which is distributed to all 9 chapters
Complimentary vendor booth at one of the Joint conferencesmdashSpring or Fall ($500 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive three free company registrations to educational sessions ($525 value)
Receive two free provider registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Gold Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in each of the four quarterly newsletter (65rdquox4rdquo) ($200 value)
Membership dues paid for one NEW member of your company ($275 value)
Receive two free company registrations to educational sessions ($350 value)
Receive one free provider registration to an educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Silver Level Bronze level benefits plus
Ad in quarterly newsletter (4rdquox4rdquo) ($150 value)
Receive one free registration company registration to educational session ($175 value)
Receive the registration list for meetings one week prior to event
Bronze Level Logo with link to company website on the Show-Me chapter website
Recognition and logo in our quarterly newsletter
Sponsor recognition on all meeting information distributed to our members
Free vendor booth at the Show-Me Chapter Conference ($500 value)
Logo on our sponsor banner at all chapter meetings
Company description will be included in one of the quarterly newsletters
Receive membership directory newsletters notice of meetings and first opportunity for event sponsorships
Please contact Jennifer Ogden
with questions or for more in-
formation on participating in
the Show-Me Sponsorship pro-
gram
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Christopher Gish Senior Accountant Mercy Hospital Carolyn Robinson Accounting Manager Missouri Delta Medical Center
Page 14 Healthcare Happenings
Job Postings
Assistant Director University Physicians Prof Revenue amp Coding University of Missouri Columbia University Physicians Direct the operational financial and personnel activities of the Professional Coding and Revenue (PCR) depart-ment Establish policies and procedures for department staff in coordination with other applicable work groups Develop and implement continuous quality improvement processes and oversee implementation of sig-nificant change Act as a resource for coders physicians staff clinical departments hospital and clinics regard-ing reimbursementbilling issues Direct the workload and set priorities for the staff in the department Provide clear direction of expected outcomes Develop and implement policies and procedures for the Professional Coding and Revenue department Hire train advise and counsel employees Prepare and monitor the annual budget for the department Coordinate third party payer audits including RAC audits for appropriateness Coordinate re-funds and appeals Provide reports to plan administrator clinical departments and other management and staff to identify billing patterns of physicians Identify areas of concern and provide possible solutions Job Requirements Requires a Bachelorrsquos Degree in Health Administration Business Administration or related discipline or equivalent combination of education and experience Masterrsquos Degree preferred A minimum of seven (7) years of advanced medical coding experience required Requires a proven record of outstanding achievement in business management and credibility to establish work-ing relationships Must possess strong leadership analytical and communication skills Certified Professional Coder (CPC) by the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) Equal Employment Opportunity - The University of Missouri is an equal access equal opportunity affirmative action employer that is fully committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff The university will recruit and employ qualified personnel and will provide equal opportunities during employment without regard to race color religion national origin sex sexual orientation age status as a protected veteran or status as a qualified person with a disability For more information call the Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resource ServicesAffirmative Action officer at 573-882-4256 To request ADA accommodations please call the Director of Accessibility amp ADA Education at 573-882-5835
Tressie Gilmore Surgical Services Supervisor Ozarks Community Hospital Ellen Segall Fagin Account Manager TTF Healthcare Search Staffing Isaac Francisco Financial Accounting Specialist University of Missouri
New
Mem
bers
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS
Page 15 Healthcare Happenings
2015 SHOW-ME CHAPTER SPONSORS