Video: Superheroes, Secret Identities & You| Webinar: ACR/CHEST ILD Guidelines in Practice

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

From the College

Rheumatology Coding Corner Questions: 2017 End-of-Year Quiz

  |  

1. A 68-year-old new female patient has an appointment to see the rheumatologist in four days. The patient has her medical records sent over from her primary care physician, neurologist and endocrinologist for the rheumatologist to review prior to the visit. Upon receipt, the rheumatologist spends 55 minutes reviewing the records and making notes. Can…

ARHP Master Designation Award Will Debut at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

Elizabeth A. Schlenk, PhD, RN, FAAN, & Afton L. Hassett, PsyD  |  

The ACR Board of Directors approved the ARHP Master Designation at its August 2017 meeting. The first two ARHP Master Designation awardees will be honored at the ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in Chicago on Oct. 20, 2018. Recognition as a Master of the ARHP is one of the highest honors that the ARHP bestows to members….

Tips to Improve Collection Rates for Patient Copays, Deductibles

  |  

The healthcare industry is currently in an era of higher copays and deductibles, and effective patient collections are critical to the financial health of practices. The front desk staff of a practice is the first area to help with patient satisfaction and the key to a healthy revenue cycle. This front desk staff must collect…

CMS Finalizes Changes in CY 2018 for Musculoskeletal Ultrasound

  |  

We previously alerted you to a CMS-proposed change that would cut reimbursement for the complete diagnostic musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) significantly. We are pleased to report that, in its final rule, the CMS reversed that decision, and providers will see a reasonable reimbursement for the exam. The ACR advocated on your behalf for this change through…

Virtual Groups: Another Option for Reporting MIPS Participation through RISE

  |  

RISE now has three means of reporting through the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS): individual, group and the recently added virtual groups. According to the CMS, virtual groups allow individual MIPS-eligible clinicians or groups consisting of not more than 10 MIPS-eligible clinicians to join together and report as if they were a single entity. The…

The ACR Lobbies Against New Part B Drug Cost Adjustment Rule

  |  

The ACR and a number of other physician medical associations are lobbying for an immediate legislative fix to a piece of the MACRA law that factors high-cost Part B drugs into a rheumatology practice’s Medicare reimbursement rate through the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). This change, which goes into effect immediately, will impact practices in…

RISE: What’s New for You in 2018?

  |  

Medicare’s Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) has been on a gradual incline toward requiring full participation by eligible providers. During its transition stage, reporting for the first year (2017) allowed providers the option to report as partial, full, minimum or not at all, with varying degrees of penalties and incentives across all three reporting components:…

Rheumatology Future Physician–Scientist Award Available for MD/PhD Students

  |  

The Rheumatology Research Foundation is now offering the Rheumatology Future Physician-Scientist Award to enhance the training of promising MD/PhD or DO/PhD students who intend to become physician-scientists. As part of the Foundation’s work to recruit and train the next generation of rheumatology professionals, the award supports the nation’s top emerging physician-scientists. S. Louis Bridges Jr., MD,…