EMS Law Bulletins
Breaking News: NLRB to Mandate New Employee Notice & Revamp Union Election Rules
JAN 20 2012
Two big changes are coming for employers, and they both go into effect on April 30, 2012.

All Medicare Contractors Must Soon Process Codes for Non-Covered Services
DEC 01 2011
Starting January 1, 2012, Medicare contractors will have to accept and process claims for services such as wheelchair van transports, treatment without transport, and other ambulance services that are not covered by Medicare. Please note that this does not require Medicare to pay for these non-covered services, it merely requires that they process claims with non-covered service codes to facilitate coordination of benefits or payments by secondary insurers. Ambulance providers will have to submit these claims with a "GY" modifier to tell their contractor to deny them.

Breaking News: HHS Issues Proposed Rule on HIPAA Accounting Standards
JUN 01 2011
On May 31, 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued an important Proposed Rule regarding the electronic health information that ambulance services create and maintain. If implemented as proposed, this Rule would overhaul the way the ambulance industry tracks and reports uses and disclosures of their patients’ protected health information (PHI).

Important New OIG Advisory Opinion Issued
JAN 25 2011
The Office of the Inspector General just issued a key Advisory Opinion about offering discounted rates to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). As many providers struggle to gain an edge in a competitive market, Advisory Opinion 10-26 reminds the ambulance industry that discounted rates could violate the Federal anti-kickback statute (AKS), even when those rates are tied things like state Medicaid rates.

“Red Flag Clarification Act” NOT a Model of Clarification
DEC 23 2010
Some Ambulance Providers Could Potentially Still be Covered

Signed into law on December 18, 2010, the “Red Flag Program Clarification Act of 2010” (S. 3987) was intended by Congress to exempt certain organizations, like healthcare providers, from coverage under the Red Flag Rules. As a result of this new law, many ambulance services will no longer be covered under the Red Flag Rules, but, the language chosen by Congress did not grant an outright “exemption” for ambulance services or any other healthcare providers. Instead, the Act merely changed the definition of the term “creditor,” which could leave some ambulance services still covered under the Red Flag Rules.

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The Ambulance Billing and Coding Desktop Reference Guide, Version 2.0 NOW AVAILABLE!

The Ambulance Billing and Coding Desktop Reference Guide, Version 2.0 is a convenient way to have all of the important procedure codes, modifiers, condition codes and transportation indicators necessary for proper ambulance billing at your fingertips.

abc3 Spring 2012 Series

Register Now - 2012 abc3 Spring Conference Series!

ABC3 is a national billing, coding and compliance conference produced exclusively for ambulance services, EMS organizations, ambulance billing companies and others with an interest in ambulance reimbursement and compliance issues. ABC3 has become the premiere ambulance reimbursement event in the United States, attended by several thousand ambulance billing professionals from around the country.


 

The New PWW Free Forms Library Is Here!


Visit the all-new PWW Free Forms Library for new and updated model forms, instructions and other documents!  You'll find all of the most important forms your ambulance service needs - free of charge!  Included are PWW's new Patient Signature Form, Physician Certification Statement, Signature Attestation Statements, Signature Logs, Advance Beneficiary Notices, Refusal Forms and More!

 

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