Physicians Practice - February 2008 - (Page 62)

HEALTHONOMICS procedures on payment, and communicating them to patients as well as posting them very clearly in the ofﬁce and on their Web site. Practices may also want to post prices for services online, so there is no ambiguity about that, suggests Dunn. Again, training is key. Make sure that your staff understands HSAs and high-deductible plans, and that they are not bashful about collecting. For those patients who call rather than come in, Dunn suggests setting up e-visits, which allow established patients an encrypted online exchange with the doctor for a small fee — say, $25. That way, the practice is paid for its time, and the patient is happy too, having gotten the answers he wanted without paying too much. MORE CHANGE AFOOT? Consumer-driven health plans seem destined to alter the way practices handle billing, but they might also force a few other changes. For one thing, says Dunn, medical documentation is going to have to get better. “If a patient who is paying for their own procedures opts out of a treatment, physicians, in order to protect themselves, will have to do a much better job documenting the discussions they had about that, outlining the reasons why they wanted [the procedure] done,” Dunn says. Otherwise, potential lawsuit. As far as she knows, there haven’t yet been any suits as a result of such a situation, but Dunn says the possibility is definitely there. Another change that’s expected as a result of HSAs’ and high-deductible plans’ presence in the market: increased EMR adoption. More and more practices, confounded by the mix of payers that now, again, includes patients, will need a good EMR system to keep it all straight and ﬂowing in a way that keeps the practice proﬁtable. “This will deﬁnitely push people toward electronic medical records,” Miller emphasizes. And if Miller’s practice is any indication, HSA adoption is still quite low, appealing mostly to people who have no problem affording their healthcare and may just be looking for another way to invest. When her 50 employees and 10 physicians were offered HSAs in 2006, none of the staff opted for them — but all of the doctors did. “The [staff] were really concerned that if they had a serious illness, they were not going to be able to put away enough money to cover the difference in that high deductible,” she says. “It was more of a risk than they were willing to take.” The physicians, however, were psyched. “They saw it as a way to put away more money on a tax-free basis after maxing out their 401(k).” • Suz Redfearn, BA, is an award-winning healthcare writer living in Falls Church, Va., who for over 15 years has written for a variety of publications, including The Washington Post and Men’s Health. She can be reached via editor@physicianspractice.com. 62 | PHYSICIANS PRACTICE | FEBRUARY 2008 WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM http://www.aapa.org/joblink http://www.aapa.org/joblink http://WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Physicians Practice - February 2008

Physicians Practice - February 2008 Contents The Bigger Picture: Your Future is in Your Hands Letters Physicians Practice Pearls: Creating an A+ Practice Noteworthy Cover Story: Conquering Time: 5 Keys to a More Efficient Practice In Balance: A Family Affair Technology: Making EMRs Work in the Exam Room In Practice: "I've Got Some Bad News" The Tech Doctor - The EMR: Savior or Poseur? Ask the Experts NEW! Healthonomics: How to Handle Health Savings Accounts The Administrator's Desk: Finishing School for New Managers Human Resources: Is Your Partner Impaired The Great Practice Makeover: Too Well-Liked for His Own Good? Coding Idealab: 'Why I Blog' Classifieds Advertiser Index

Physicians Practice - February 2008

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