|
  |
| Dear John, Skilled nursing facilities (SNF) are not new, and yet there are often limited sessions at healthcare conferences that focus on the challenges that these organizations face. Education for the business office can be particularly difficult to find, but its members often wear multiple hats and serve as the last line of defense before a claim is submitted. The many tasks completed by billers and business office managers have reverberating effects on reimbursement, including the complicated and complex process of completing cost reports. While facilities have tools to assist in gathering data for cost reports, simple errors can have huge impacts on reimbursement. Fortunately, these errors can be avoided by identifying them before they occur. At the 2019 Revenue Integrity Symposium (RIS), to be held October 15–16 in Orlando, I’ll provide guidance for using cost reporting data to help facilities improve their accounting process during my session, “Avoiding Common Cost Report Mistakes: Implications for Compliance and Reimbursement.” I’ll also provide a detailed overview of a cost report’s elements and submission timelines and case studies detailing common scenarios. People who attend my session should expect an interactive presentation where audience members can share their knowledge, as well as ask questions and share challenges. I’ll also draw connections between cost reporting and its ties to revenue cycle management. I have had the privilege of speaking at RIS in the past and have enjoyed not only teaching others, but also learning from them. The symposium provides a great opportunity for professionals to exchange knowledge and meet new, like-minded members of the revenue integrity community. This year, I’m looking forward to seeing RIS expand to include an LTC track, as well as reconnecting with longtime friends and colleagues who have attended before. RIS not only provides great training on evergreen topics that can be referred back to again and again, the breakouts and formal sessions also help attendees stay abreast of regulatory changes. Last year there was a session on CMS requirements for hospitals to make public a list of their standard charges via the internet. This session not only reviewed the regulatory requirements, but also provided interactions between attendees to discuss their interpretation and how their hospitals were going to meet this requirement. This year, with the addition of the LTC track sponsored by the Association for Medicare Billing and Reimbursement (AMBR) for Long-Term Care, attendees can look forward to several sessions that review CMS’ new payment model and its many regulatory ties, as well as implications for senior management and training for the business office. I hope you’ll join me at RIS. Sincerely,  Kim Cusson, CCS, CPC | |
| Editor’s note: Kim Cusson, CCS, CPC, is the healthcare risk CBA manager in Crowe Horwath’s healthcare division. Cusson has more than 30 years of healthcare experience including more than 20 years of experience in auditing, hospital postacute care consulting, and physician coding and billing. She has also held positions as billing director, healthcare compliance manager, and outpatient coding manager. Cusson has served as board member of a local professional association. Don’t miss Cusson’s other session at RIS, “Implementing Revenue Cycle Management for SNFs,” to understand what RCM is and how the accounting model’s best practices can be utilized to optimize revenue under PDPM. |
| |
| customer@simplifycompliance.com | 800-650-6787 | www.hcmarketplace.com
MAGNET(TM), MAGNET RECOGNITION PROGRAM(R), and ANCC MAGNET RECOGNITION(R) are trademarks of the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). The products and services of HCPro are neither sponsored nor endorsed by the ANCC. The acronym "MRP" is not a trademark of HCPro or its parent company. HCPro is not affiliated in any way with The Joint Commission, which owns the JCAHO and Joint Commission trademarks, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, which owns the ACGME trademark, or the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC). HCPro is not affiliated in any way with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). | |
