The program is free to all CMGMA members and includes continental breakfast, networking with peers, the creation of study groups, and core curriculum materials for the Certification and Fellowship process. Further educational materials will be available for purchase from MGMA.

We will begin the morning with an informational session on the Certification process, including the Scholarship fund. We will also review the "Body of Knowledge" which is the core curriculum for the certification process. Then beginning at approximately 10:00 am, we will begin discussing the fellowship process which will include a Tutorial packet of information on the Fellowship process.

We hope that this informational session will be the kick start that CMGMA members need to get moving toward their certification and fellowship goals. If you are interested in attending, please email the CMGMA Office at info@cmgma.org on or before March 9 with your name, practice name, email address and phone number.

Join us for our Annual "Healthcare Year in Review" and Annual Meeting.

Each year, CMGMA conducts a Year in Review in Healthcare.  This meeting is designed to give practice managers an update on important laws, regulations, and initiatives that impact the daily operations of your practice.  From changes to PA supervision, CME requirements, professional rehabilitation assistance programs, HMO litigation, a medical liability update, and informed consent, Jennifer Cox will discuss the ins and outs of this year's major State law changes.  She will also discuss three other hot topics: 1. HIPAA security audits (the Government is on the move); 2. Understanding EMR/IT sharing rules including fraud and abuse and tax considerations; and 3. Possible downstream ramifications from the growth of no-pay quality indicators.

After our Annual Meeting, at which the 2008 Board of Directors will be elected, Lisa Goldstein from MGMA will present the “Washington Update” which will include timely information on the status of Medicare administrative simplification, Medicare reimbursement and fraud and abuse compliance. The presentation will also address other hot topics under consideration by Congress and federal regulatory agencies.

See our program brochure for more details.

Join us for our Annual "Healthcare Year in Review" and Annual Meeting where we will elect our 2009 Board of Directors.

For the first time in history, four distinct generations - Matures, Boomers, Xers, and Millennials - are employed side by side in the workplace. With differing values and seemingly incompatible views on leadership, these generations have stirred up unprecedented conflict in the business world. Effective management of this generational divide is vital to longevity and success. In fact, it is the most important demand your company can make of its leaders.

In this engaging presentation, you will learn how each generation developed its core values, how that manifests in the workplace today, and why they can all not only operate alongside each other, but do so with extraordinary success. This program provides the generational insight, concrete examples and specific approaches to help frustrated managers build the individual connections needed to boost employee performance and retention.

Walk away from this experience knowing:

• Common generational characteristics
• Specific leadership needs of each generation
• The new definition of company loyalty
• Fresh guidelines for team building

As you will learn, the only common ground is the intensity with which each generation holds fast to its value system. Understanding and respecting those generational biases are critical.

“Today, I can truly say that our organization has undergone a metamorphosis. What a fantastic difference that FISH! has made in our office. My only regret is that we didn’t know about it sooner. FISH! has become a way of life for us. Our staff is happier, our patients are happier!”- Kimberly Hoch, Novus Clinic

Extraordinary! The one man I can look up to and respect, incredible, mind blowing and memorable, and incredibly inspiring, amazing human being, invaluable to hear him first hand …are among the words heard from participants’ after experiencing Patch Adams, the real person behind the hit movie Patch Adams, starring Robin Williams.

CMGMA is offering a free webinar which will focus on the 2010 OIG Work Plan as it relates to physicians.  Join practice administrators, billing and coding staff, compliance officers and physicians who rely on the OIG’s annual report to review risk areas in Part B Billing. Nancy Enos will discuss the latest and most pressing compliance concerns for physicians in the OIG Work Plan. You’ll walk away with a strong understanding of the OIG’s key concerns, as well as best practices for staying in compliance. 

This seminar will also provide an update on RAC audits. The Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program is charged with identifying improper Medicare fee-for service payments, both overpayments and underpayments. In October 2008, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) named four permanent RACs nation wide. What does this mean to you as a Medicare provider? The RAC may contact you to request medical records. The records will be used to assist the RAC to identify Medicare overpayments and underpayments. In addition, the RAC may communicate review findings and overpayments determined through their efforts. This session will review the number of records, and frequency of RAC record requests for your practice.

The Consultation Coding changes for Medicare will also be discussed, including important billing implications and crosswalk samples.

About the Speaker:

Nancy M. Enos, FACMPE, CPC-I is a healthcare educator, auditor and consultant with 30 years of operations experience in the practice management field. Nancy is a Fellow of the American College of Medical Executives. She serves as co-chair of the IT Advisory Panel of the Information Management Society for MGMA. She is Past President of the Rhode Island/Massachusetts MGMA and serves as President-Elect of the Eastern Section. She is the Founding President of the Rhode Island Chapter of the American Academy of Professional Coders.

 *This program has been approved by the AAPC for 1 CEU for Certified Coders* 

“Where do I begin?!”  A Healthcare Leader’s Guide to Embracing New Marketing Initiatives to Increase Patient Referrals 

In the reality of our shifting economic climate, successful, business-minded medical organizations are shifting the way they approach marketing. Successful practices are now putting the focus back on their patients and using innovative marketing strategies that bring greater return on their investment. As a healthcare leader, how do you lead your organization to capitalize on the new media world--effectively and efficiently utilizing new marketing tools to continue to build strong relationships with existing patients and attract new patients? How do you address the concerns of your physicians and your responsibilities to protect your patients’ privacy, while being “open” online? By attending this interactive training course with seasoned healthcare marketing professional Jamie Verkamp, you’ll know the answers to these questions, plus what it takes to make growing your patient volumes a reality.  You will learn key marketing initiatives you can implement right away in your practice to increase your new-patient volume and successfully market to your current patients to increase patient retention and referrals, including:

To begin registering for ACMPE exams, visit the ACMPE exam registration page. 

If you have any questions about the upcoming ACMPE exam or are interested in learning more about becoming certified, please contact Amy Russell, CMGMA ACMPE College Forum Rep. at amyr@smilesforthefuture.com or the CMGMA office at (860) 243-3977.

This statement is being submitted on behalf of the members of the Connecticut Medical Group Management Association on Raised Bill 14 – An Act Prohibiting Co-payments for Preventive Care.

Raised Bill 14 prohibits managed care companies from imposing a copayment, deductible or other out-of-pocket expense for preventive care services. This would include charges for annual physicals and periodic health evaluations, including tests and diagnostic procedures ordered in connection with routine examinations such as annual physicals; routine prenatal and well-child care; child and adult immunizations; tobacco cessation programs; and obesity weight-loss programs. As medical practice managers, we believe this to be a good idea as research has shown that increased cost sharing discourages people from seeking necessary care, but we do have one concern.   The bill before you does not specify what happens when managed care companies are prohibited from requiring the copayment – does the physician lose that payment and bare the economic brunt or does the managed care company reimburse the physician? We ask that before passing this bill out of committee, you clarify this point. To ask physicians to bare the financial brunt of this bill is unfair given the financial lose that physicians currently take on Medicaid, Medicare and dually eligible patients and even patients who have private insurance whose claims are routinely denied.

The Connecticut Medical Group Management Association submits this statement concerning Raised Bill 252 - An Act Concerning Medical Malpractice Data Reporting. 

The bill before you would expand professional liability insurance closed claim reporting requirements, grant the Insurance Commissioner the authority to fine entities that fail to submit reports as required and add confidentiality provisions. Our main concern with the bill is its definition of a “closed claim”. The bill defines a closed claim as a claim that has been settled or otherwise disposed by the insuring entity, self-insurer or health care provider, where all indemnity and expense payments have been made.   A claim may be closed with or without an indemnity payment to a claimant. We interpret this to mean that a “closed claim” could be the “write off” of a balance due from the patient and that this would then be “reportable”.  This is problematic for physician offices as physicians sometimes forgive balances due from patients for reasons unrelated to a professional liability issues. 

 In recent years, the citizens of the State of Connecticut have faced increasing financial hardship due to rising rates of unemployment, increases in the rate of personal bankruptcy, the rising cost of health insurance as well as the prevalence of high deductible health plans. In this environment it is increasingly common for physicians to forgive patient balances due to a patient’s financial hardship, particularly in the context of a patient suffering from a debilitating or terminal disease. Further, it would be difficult to retroactively determine why a claim was closed.

We are concerned that, as written, the legislation would have the unintended effect of causing physicians to be less likely to forgive balances due from patients who find themselves dealing with financial hardship. While we do not believe that this was the intent of the legislation, it may be the effect. We hope that this Committee will consider clarifying the definition.