Author Archive

ICD-10 Webinar Series for QNXT Users Begins Oct. 3, 2011

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

HCIM and AXIOM Systems have teamed up to provide QNXT users with the knowledge they need to navigate the complexities of the transition to the ICD-10 coding system.

This free educational webinar series will include four 1-hour webinars, with your choice of session on either Monday or Wednesday to better fit your schedule. Featured speaker and leading ICD-10 expert Peggy Honts of AXIOM Systems gives a brief overview of ICD-10, demonstrates real code analysis, explains one-to-many mapping, explores the financial impacts you can expect to see in different areas of your business, and provides implementation strategies that will help ensure a successful transition to ICD-10.

BONUS: Following the webinar series, participants will receive an eKit, including HCIM and AXIOM’s Mind Mapping Tool used during the four webinars, a copy of the webinar presentations, recordings from each of the four webinars, and links to valuable implementation/project plan resources.

Webinar One

Beginning with a brief overview of the ICD-10 coding system, learn the differences between ICD-9 and ICD-10, observe a code analysis example using real ICD-10 codes, and discuss the financial impacts ICD-10 will have on your business, including risk mitigation factors. AXIOM will help uncover the different areas of your business that will be affected. We’ll close with a Q&A session.
Option 1: Monday, Oct. 3, 2011 • 1 p.m. PT
Option 2: Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2011 • 11 a.m. PT

Webinar Two

Explore the impact ICD-10 will have on Network Management, including Provider Contracts, Physician Profiles, Provider Outreach, Reimbursement Methodologies, P4P, and more. Then we’ll look at Claim/Encounter Processing, Information Technology (IT), and Member/Patient Management. We’ll close with a Q&A session.
Option 1: Monday, Oct. 17, 2011 • 1 p.m. PT
Option 2: Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011 • 11 a.m. PT

Webinar Three

Learn how ICD-10 will affect Medical Management, including Clinical Documentation, Care Plans, Disease/Population Management, Risk Assessments, and more. Then we’ll delve into Monitoring Business Metrics and Customer Service. We’ll conclude with a Q&A session.
Option 1: Monday, Oct. 24, 2011 • 1 p.m. PT
Option 2: Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011 • 11 a.m. PT

Webinar Four

Learn how to make the ICD-10 implementation as painless as possible. We’ll look at Project Management Impacts, Staff Training, Testing, Data Strategies, Reporting Impacts, Vendor Management, and Testing/Trading Partner Management. We’ll end with implementation best practices and discuss your implementation next steps.
Option 1: Monday, Oct. 31, 2011 • 1 p.m. PT
Option 2: Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011 • 11 a.m. PT

Register for this webinar series.

Note: You will automatically be registered for the entire webinar series and will therefore have the option of attending either the Monday or Wednesday session each week.

Your confirmation email will include instructions on logging in and a link to add the webinars to your Outlook calendar. Email education@hcim.com with any questions or concerns.

Free ICD-10 Educational Webinar Series Hits Home

Thursday, September 8th, 2011

Over 130 EZ-CAP users registered to attend HCIM and AXIOM Systems’ joint ICD-10 Educational Webinar Series, entitled “ICD-10’s Impact on Your Business.” Word traveled fast after MZI Healthcare encouraged its EZ-CAP client base to attend the free series via their EZ-Communicator email notice.

Featured speaker and leading ICD-10 and 5010 subject matter expert Peggy Honts of AXIOM Systems presented on ICD-10’s projected impact on key areas of a healthcare payer organization’s business and concluded the series with some helpful ICD-10 implementation strategies. Attendees appreciated the ICD-10 code analysis, real-life examples, and insight into impacted business areas that are often overlooked. HCIM received great feedback from this Summer 2011 series.

If you missed the webinar, you can view the ICD-10 Webinar eKit for a copy of the Mind Mapping Tool PDF, a 5010 and ICD-10 Benchmarks Timeline, a sample WEDI ICD-10 Timeline to help with your project plan, a free code converter, an exclusive special offer for an ICD-10 Impact Assessment, recordings from the four webinars, PDFs of all the session presentations, and more.

Below are the webinar polling results.

Which of the following business areas would you like to discuss throughout this webinar series?
90% – Reporting Impacts
80% – Claim/Encounter Processing
62% – Information Technology (IT)
56% – Vendor Management
52% – Disease/Population Management
40% – Monitoring Business Metrics
38% – Member Management
30% – Customer Service
28% – Testing/Trading Partner Management

What do you think will be your biggest hurdle with ICD-10?
33% – Resources (skills required for ICD-10)
33% – Staff Training
25% – Vendor Readiness
08% – Budget/Competing Priorities
00% – Executive Management Commitment

What is the sense of urgency around ICD-10 in your organization?
50% – On the radar, work is just beginning
20% – Aware, but no action yet
20% – Somewhat urgent
10% – Very urgent
00% – No urgency at all

How complete is your impact assessment?
27% – Not started yet
35% – 1-25% complete
24% – 26-50% complete
08% – 51-75% complete
05% – 76-100% complete

If you have any questions or would like to discuss your ICD-10 implementation, please email info@hcim.com or call 888-454-0202, option 5.

Kimberly Magras Promoted to Administrative Services Coordinator

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

Kimberly Magras has been promoted to Administrative Services Coordinator at HCIM. In her new role, Kim will oversee HCIM’s administrative operations, manage Colleague payroll/benefits, conduct on-boarding and training for new Colleagues, and coordinate corporate events and meetings. She will also serve on HCIM’s Leadership Team.

“I am excited for the opportunity to serve in this new position, and I look forward to providing input and implementing new processes which will contribute to the organizational goals of HCIM,” said Kim.

“For the past three years, Kim has been invaluable in facilitating HCIM’s day-to-day operations. HCIM is steadily expanding its footprint in the healthcare payer industry and has been hiring and training new Colleagues and consultants to serve our clients, so the Leadership Team saw the need for a full time Administrative Services Coordinator to keep operations running smoothly and ease the integration of new Colleagues into our family. Kim was the perfect fit for this position and we welcome her to the Leadership Team,” said Michael Wilson, President and CEO of HCIM.

Thomas Streeter Takes on New Role as SVP, Product Solutions

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

HCIM co-founder and Senior Vice President, Thomas Streeter, has shifted roles and is now the Senior Vice President, Product Solutions. His new role will involve all HCIM product-related needs, including technical support, client account management, licensing agreements, installations/implementations, training, QA testing, custom application development, and overall HCIM product direction.

“I’m excited to have Tom in this position where he can focus on our clients and help them get the most out of our products. He has already taken the opportunity to meet with several clients onsite and has found areas where they were underutilizing SymKey for EZ-CAP. He was able to supply additional training to help them increase their automated claims adjudication rate, which has already saved them time and money. This value-added service demonstrates HCIM’s commitment to customer service and meeting the business process automation needs of the healthcare payer industry,” said Michael Wilson, President and CEO of HCIM.

SymKey Saves the Day at NAMM-IL

Wednesday, July 13th, 2011

The Problem

North American Medical Management of Illinois, Inc. (NAMM-IL) was recently impacted by a retroactive fee schedule change that involved processing over 300,000 claims on top of their current workload! A project of this magnitude threatened to bring their normal day-to-day operations to a standstill as staff would’ve had to pour thousands of hours into reprocessing the claims.

The Solution

Bonnie Mezzano, Director of Claims at NAMM-IL, reached out to HCIM and requested two SymKey for EZ-CAP limited duration seat licenses to help recreate and reprice the 300,000+ claims resulting from the retroactive fee schedule change. Instead of taking several months for their staff to adjust the claims, they set up a SymKey scenario to recreate and adjust the claims in a matter of weeks.

What NAMM-IL’s Claims Staff Has to Say

“When our fee schedules were recently updated for 2011, we were faced with the enormous task of recreating and repricing nearly 150,000 claims. Because we did not want to inflate claims utilization, we could not reprocess each detail line in a single step – pay new contract amount and adjust out the previously paid amount. For each claim to be reprocessed, a reversal and a positive claim were created. Thus, 150,000 claims became 300,000 claims! We worked with HCIM to develop scenarios for this process. Since we didn’t want to pay an item that was denied on the original claim, HCIM also helped develop a script to ensure that if a detail line was denied on the original claim, it was also denied on the repriced claim. Without SymKey’s help, completion of the project in a timely manner would have been near impossible. Now, if only SymKey could do the review and post the claims as well!” – Bonnie Mezzano, Director of Claims

“The claim department was presented with a monumental task. Our Fee Schedules were updated in the last quarter of 2010 and beginning of 2011. We were faced with the question: How will we be able to reprocess over 300,000 claims? It would take thousands of staff-hours just to enter all these claims, not to mention the auditing claims for accuracy of copay, eligibility, coding, etc. SymKey recreated the 300,000 claims for us so that our focus was on auditing the repricing payments. Thank you SymKey for all the hours you saved us.” – Karen Cherone, Claims Supervisor

“SymKey has been a big help with the re-pricing of claims for the new rates for 2010 and 2011. Because of the separate reversal and repricings, the project grew to over 300,000 claims. With SymKey we were able to create a negative and positive batch of claims in order to complete the project. It would have taken an adjustor weeks to do what SymKey did in just a few days. SymKey has been a great asset to the department.” – Thelma Simpson, Claims Supervisor

“SymKey was very instrumental with the volume we encountered. Being able to change statuses was one of the key steps for our review process. This work around enabled us to block our claim categories and review without interfering in our regular claim process. SymKey has been a tremendous help! SymKey made the impossible possible!” – Marina Nuñez, Claims Supervisor

About SymKey Limited Duration Licenses

Like NAMM-IL, all SymKey clients can license additional SymKey seats on a project-by-project basis to tackle large tasks without interrupting their current workload. This has proven to be a cost-effective method of claims processing because it eliminates the need for hiring and training temporary claims analysts to spend months doing what SymKey can do in days or weeks.

HCIM Colleagues Meet for Strategic Planning, Texas BBQ, and the Houston Astros

Wednesday, July 13th, 2011

HCIM’s June 24-25 All Colleague Meeting was held in Houston, Texas. Colleagues met to discuss the strategic direction of the company and celebrate HCIM’s success.

Meeting Highlights

Marilyn with iPad

Marilyn and the winning hand.


HCIM Colleagues played “Houston Hold’em,” HCIM’s spin on Texas Hold’em. Marilyn Nickles took home the grand prize, a much-coveted iPad, with an impressive four-of-a-kind. Congratulations, Marilyn!

Michael Wilson won HCIM’s hole-in-one golf tournament at the Pecan Grove Plantation Country Club, of which he’s a member. We chalked it up to home court advantage because he was the furthest from the hole in the last hole-in-one golf tournament in Concord, California. It also helped that we putted with real golf balls this time, not limes.

Colleagues learned some pretty astonishing facts about each other while enjoying classic Texas-style BBQ at Michael Wilson’s beautiful home. The best fact? Kim Magras was once kidnapped at sea.

Colleagues kicked back in HCIM’s private suite at Minute Maid Park, where they watched the Houston Astros vs. Tampa Bay Rays baseball game in luxury.

Left to right: Tom Streeter, Angie Reynolds, Marilyn Nickles, John Rickenbach, Mike Wilson, Kim Magras, Greg Merica, Jeff Hall, Amy Sipe, Tim Brandt

During the 7th inning stretch, the Astros welcomed HCIM Colleagues.

ICD-10 Myth Buster: Do GEMs provide simple one-to-one Reimbursement Mappings?

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011

NCHS and CMS have published General Equivalency Mappings (GEMs) as a translation reference between I-10 and I-9 diagnosis and procedure codes. These ”one-to-one” mappings translate one I-10 code to either one I-9 code or one cluster of up to six ICD-9 codes. This is why the mappings are referred to as both one-to-one and one-to-many.

I-9 Code Clusters

In some cases it takes as many as six I-9 codes combined (clustered) to reproduce one I-10 code. According to CMS, “This is the case with I-9 principal procedure codes such as coronary angioplasty that require the use of ‘adjunct’ I-9 codes to provide additional detail.”

I-10 Procedure Corresponding I-9 Procedures
02733ZZ: Dilation of Coronary Artery, Four or More Sites, Percutaneous Approach 00.66: PTCA or coronary atherectomy
00.43: Procedure on four or more vessels

If the procedure was performed on four or more vessels, the “adjunct” 00.43 I-9 code must be applied in addition to 00.66 because some reimbursement systems may pay more for a procedure performed on four or more vessels.

I-9 Code Alternatives

According to CMS, “More than one I-9 code may be a valid translation of a given I-10 code. Which one of those I-9 codes is the most correct translation cannot be determined based on the meaning of the codes themselves.”

I-10 Procedure Corresponding I-9 Procedures
0LQ70ZZ: Repair Right Hand Tendon, Open Approach 83.61: Suture of tendon sheath
83.64: Other suture of tendon

 

ICD-10 Reimbursement Mapping*
Distribution of mappings to single I-9 codes and I-9 code clusters

Code set Mapped to single
I-9 code
Mapped to 2-code cluster Mapped to 3-code cluster Mapped to 4-code cluster Mapped to 5-code cluster Mapped to 6-code cluster Total
I-10 codes
ICD-10-CM (diagnosis) 65,767 3,302 26 6 0 0 69,101
ICD-10-PCS (procedure) 69,657 1,211 583 458 36 12 71,957

For more information on the ICD-10 code impacts, contact HCIM Client Services at 888-454-0202, ext. 3.

*Download CMS’ ICD-10-CM/PCS to ICD-9-CM Reimbursement Mappings 2010 Version Documentation and User’s Guide

Free HIPAA X12 Compliance Tools & Resources

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011

You now have less than one year to achieve full compliance with HIPAA X12!
The January 1, 2012 compliance date requires the replacement of HIPAA ASC X12 version 4010A1 with version 5010 and NCPDP version 5.1 with version D.0.

Did you know?

CMS has already begun accepting the 5010 format. HHS permits the dual use of existing standards (4010A1 and 5.1) and the new standards (5010 and D.0) from the March 17, 2009, effective date until the January 1, 2012 compliance date to facilitate testing subject to trading partner agreement.

CMS’ Compliance Level Deadlines for 5010 and D.0

Deadline Compliance Level
December 31, 2010 Level I Compliance: “a covered entity can demonstrably create and receive compliant transactions, resulting from the compliance of all design/build activities and internal testing”
December 31, 2011 Level II Compliance: “a covered entity has completed end-to-end testing with each of its trading partners, and is able to operate in production mode with the new versions of the standards.”
January 1, 2012 All covered entities must be fully compliant.

 

Free Tools and Resources

HCIM recommends using the following timeline and resources to facilitate a successful and timely transition to 5010 and D.0:

HIPAA X12 Modifications Timeline

Plan out the implementation and track your progress with NCHICA and WEDI’s ICD-10 and HIPAA X12 benchmarks.

CMS 5010 EDI Resources

Simplify the 5010/D.0 requirements

Whether you’ve already begun working on the HIPAA EDI changes or still don’t know where to start, HCIM is your resource for guidance and support. For your next steps or for more information, contact HCIM Client Services at services@hcim.com or 888-454-0202, ext. 3.

Free ICD-10 Implementation Tools

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011

Don’t lose sight of the ICD-10 deadline! October 1, 2013 is closer than you think…

Did you know?

You should have already completed ICD-10 impact assessment, risk analysis, and mitigation planning. If you haven’t, you’re in good company – industry surveys indicate that the majority of healthcare payers are behind on their ICD-10 implementation.

Myth Buster

Many people still believe that the new ICD-10 CM and PCS code set transition from ICD-9-CM will simply involve one-to-one mapping, but it will also require one-to-many general equivalency mappings (GEMs). This will require analysis, system reconfiguration, and thorough staff training. ICD-10 Myth Buster: Is the ICD-10 implementation really just a simple code mapping effort?

Free ICD-10 Implementation Tools

HCIM recommends using these free tools to meet the ICD-10 compliance deadline:

Conduct a Preliminary Assessment

Determine if you’re on track for a timely implementation and prioritize upcoming tasks with the AHIMA ICD-10-CM/PCS Readiness Assessment and Prioritization Tool.

Adopt a Comprehensive Project Plan

Utilize NCHICA and WEDI’s free ICD-10 project plan, available in Microsoft® Project and PDF format.

Stay on Track

Gauge your progress on both the ICD-10 and HIPAA EDI standards implementations with NCHICA and WEDI’s ICD-10 and HIPAA X12 benchmarks.

Turn the complexity of the ICD-10 requirements into simplified solutions.

Whether you’ve already begun your assessment or still don’t know where to start, HCIM is your ICD-10 resource for guidance and support. For your next steps, contact HCIM Client Services at services@hcim.com or 888-454-0202, ext. 3.

ICD-10 Myth Buster: Is the ICD-10 implementation really just a simple code mapping effort?

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011

Many people still believe that the new ICD-10 CM and PCS code set transition from ICD-9-CM will simply involve one-to-one mapping, but it will also require one-to-many general equivalency mappings (GEMs). This will require analysis, system reconfiguration, and thorough staff training.

One-To-Many Example

With the new ICD-10 coding, sports injuries will be coded with the sport and reason for the injury. Here’s the difference between ICD-9 and ICD-10 coding for sports injuries:

ICD-9 Code

  • Striking against or struck accidentally in sports without subsequent fall (E917.0)

ICD-10-CM Detail Codes

  • W21.00 Struck by hit or thrown ball, unspecified type
  • W21.01 Struck by football
  • W21.02 Struck by soccer ball
  • W21.03 Struck by baseball
  • W21.04 Struck by golf ball
  • W21.05 Struck by basketball
  • W21.06 Struck by volleyball
  • W21.07 Struck by softball
  • W21.09 Struck by other hit or thrown ball
  • W21.31 Struck by shoe cleats Stepped on by shoe cleats
  • W21.32 Struck by skate blades Skated over by skate blades
  • W21.39 Struck by other sports foot wear
  • W21.4 Striking against diving board
  • W21.11 Struck by baseball bat
  • W21.12 Struck by tennis racquet
  • W21.13 Struck by golf club
  • W21.19 Struck by other bat, racquet or club
  • W21.210 Struck by ice hockey stick
  • W21.211 Struck by field hockey stick
  • W21.220 Struck by ice hockey puck
  • W21.221 Struck by field hockey puck
  • W21.81 Striking against or struck by football  helmet
  • W21.89 Striking against or struck by other sports equipment
  • W21.9 Striking against or struck by unspecified sports equipment

That’s right, there are 24 possible ICD-10-CM detail codes to represent sports injuries, compared to only one ICD-9 sports injury code. This is just one of many examples that busts the myth that this is a simple one-to-one mapping effort.

For more information on the ICD-10 code impacts, contact HCIM Client Services at services@hcim.com or 888-454-0202, ext. 3.