 |
Orange County Chiropractic District
|
|
|
|
Memorandum to: ACA Board of Governors, House of
Delegates and other interested parties In this report: 1. PHYSICAL THERAPISTS AND OSTEOPATHS SUBMIT STATEMENTS AGAINST CHIROPRACTIC IN VETERANS AFFAIRS 2. LOBBYING HAS BECOME A DANGEROUS BUSINESS 3. ACA ADDRESS CCI EDIT PROBLEM 4. WHITE HOUSE COMMISSION ON COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE POLICY 5. HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996 6. CODING COMMITTEE ACTS 7. ACA-PAC CONTINUES TO SHINE 8. ACA PRESIDENT MAKES A POLITICAL STATEMENT 9. LOOK FOR ACA TODAY IN DYNAMIC CHIROPRACTIC 1 0. ENDORSEMENTS OF PRACTICE MANAGEMENT COMPANIES 11. ACA LEADERS HIT THE CONVENTION CIRCUIT (ACA IS EVERYWHERE) 12. ACA CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE RED CROSS OVER $20,000 PHYSICAL THERAPISTS AND OSTEOPATHS SUBMIT STATEMENTS AGAINST CHIROPRACTIC IN VETERANS AFFAIRS At the recent markup of VA legislation in the House Veterans Affairs Committee, representatives of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) were present to oppose the chiropractic provision. Despite the opposition, the committee passed the chiropractic language. Both the APTA and AOA submitted written statements. I have included some excerpts below: APTA: "With this concern, APTA opposes a new mandate establishing chiropractors as primary care providers (PCP) within the Veterans Health Administration. APTA fears that the additional costs of creating a new PC could lead to a lack of resources to address the rehabilitation needs of Veterans." AOA: "AOA supports the inclusion of chiropractic services in the Veterans Health Administration…However, we strongly oppose the classification of chiropractors as primary care providers. It is the opinion of the AOA that chiropractors lack the basic-science and clinical-science education that all allopathic and osteopathic physicians receive during their medical school training. It is our opinion that the clinical training osteopathic and allopathic physicians received during medical school and residency is far superior to that received by chiropractors." Nice to know who your friends are!! I think we caught the physical therapists and osteopaths flat-footed at the hearing. And the AMA was nowhere to be found. You will recall that the AMA last year testified in opposition to our inclusion, and we suspect that they will resurface on the Senate side. We have already been told that the physical therapists and osteopaths are already lobbying against our provision on the Senate side. LOBBYING HAS BECOME A DANGEROUS BUSINESS Jay Witter, ACA's vice president of Government Relations, and Lesley Smith, ACA's political action committee director, along with Association of Chiropractic Colleges (ACC) executive director Dave O'Bryon, were in the office of the Majority Leader Tom Daschle on Thursday. They were lobbying for the inclusion of chiropractic in the Veterans Administration for the Senate version of the VA bill when the alert went out to evacuate the Hart building because of a reported bomb scare. Our guys left with Daschle's staff through a side passage and ended up in a spot designated for the Senator. Lobbying has always been tough business but this is ridiculous!. ACA ADDRESS CCI EDIT PROBLEM The ACA is working to oppose the inappropriate use of the CCI edits that are published for Medicare use but are very often picked up and used inappropriately by third party carriers. We have attacked this problem from several sides and will continue to keep the pressure on to disband wrongful edits that harm the chiropractic profession. Our strategy includes: Direct lobbying with CMS (formerly HCFA) to eliminate the edits on inclusive procedures where it does not apply to doctors of chiropractic. I have scheduled a formal meeting with CMS to discuss this issue, as several attempts to remedy the situation through correspondence have failed. Education of doctors of chiropractic on the correct use of codes and how to appeal CCI edits with payers. The Office of Professional Development and Research (PDR) has developed specific talking points to walk you through a denial. You can access this information on the ACA Web site at: http://www.acatoday.com/insurance/cci_edit.html Confronting large vendors and private insurers who are using the edits meant only for Medicare. Dr. Jerilynn Kaibel, chair of ACA's Coding and Reimbursement Committee, is working with the medical director of ClaimCheck, the largest software vendor that is selling inaccurate edits to insurers and managed care groups. On October 18-19, ACA's Office of Professional Development and Research and Dr. John Gentile, chair of the ACA Insurance and Managed Care Committee, will also meet with most of the large national insurers and relay a cease and desist message to them as well. If you know of companies or networks using the CCI edits to bundle reimbursement, please send that information to Pat Jackson at the ACA for action. WHITE HOUSE COMMISSION ON COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE POLICY A couple of weeks ago, ACA's Government Relations staff attended meetings of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy. The commission is tasked with providing the president and Congress with recommendations on improving access to complementary and alternative health care to American consumers. The meeting was held to discuss the commission's progress on its draft report. Issues to be included in the report address access and delivery, coverage and reimbursement, education and training, centralizing federal CAM efforts, CAM in wellness, and health promotion. Prior to this meeting, the ACA sent a strong message to the commission on its opposition to the use of affinity programs in providing complementary and alternative health care to American consumers. The ACA plans to send a follow-up letter to the commission to address various topics discussed at the last meeting. The commission is required to submit its report to Congress by March 7, 2002. To view ACA's affinity letter, go to http://www.acatoday.com/government/comments_affinity.html. HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996 In 1996, Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to address various health care issues, including portability of insurance, fraud and abuse, medical records privacy, and electronic claims transactions. The regulations are phased in over a period of time with the electronic transfers provision effective October 16, 2002, and privacy regulations effective April 14, 2003. Although health care providers will be impacted by all aspects of the law, ACA has received specific questions regarding medical records privacy and electronic transfer of claims. The ACA is currently working on developing educations resources to provide doctors of chiropractic with a better understanding of the law. In addition, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has developed a comprehensive website addressing many frequently asked questions about HIPAA, which can be found at http://www.hcfa.gov/hipaa/hipaahm.htm. As an aside, the ACA has joined a coalition that includes all health care groups, the Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans, and major managed care companies supporting legislation to extend the deadline for the implementation of these provisions. Stay tuned. ACA-PAC CONTINUES TO SHINE The ACA-PAC is pleased to report that since January it has raised $380,000. This is nearly the largest amount raised in any year since the Clinton health care days, when it raised over $1 million. All the more significant is that it raised this amount during the first six months of the year despite not having conducted a drive since that time. ACA PRESIDENT MAKES A POLITICAL STATEMENT The Republican Party in Nebraska sponsored a fundraiser for prominent U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel, Congressman Tom Osbourne and Governor Mike Johanns. Of the 78 host couples that paid $200 for sponsorship, the majority were obtained by Dr. Daryl Wills and his wife Bobbie. Over $50,000 in total was raised. The largest cash contribution came from the ACA-PAC. Senator Hagel is a boyhood friend of Dr. Wills and is a prominent spokesperson for the Republicans in the Senate. He was on President Bush's short list for vice president. LOOK FOR ACA TODAY IN DYNAMIC CHIROPRACTIC As a means of reaching a larger chiropractic audience with ACA Today, the October 22nd and November 19th issues of Dynamic Chiropractic will include ACA Today as an insert. Beginning next year, the February 11th, March 11th and April 8th issues of Dynamic will include ACA Today. ENDORSEMENTS OF PRACTICE MANAGEMENT COMPANIES In a continuing effort to assist its membership in identifying ethical and effective practice management consulting firms, the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) recently renewed its endorsement of Kats Management, Inc. and Dallas Humble, Inc. Consultants interested in ACA's endorsement must go through a rigorous and comprehensive evaluation process. As a result, the ACA has conveyed an endorsement of only three practice management firm endorsements in recent years. The endorsement of the third firm, Breakthrough Coaching, Inc., will be up for renewal in January 2002. Dallas Humble, Inc. and Kats Management each provide a variety of consulting services, products, and educational programs to help chiropractors succeed in today's challenging health care environment. Each has its own style, format, strengths, and pricing structure. Both provide discounts to ACA members on selected products and services. For more information on Dallas Humble, Inc., visit www.dallashumble.com or call 1(800) 282-1947 x100. More information on Kats Management, Inc. can be found at www.katsmanagement.com or by calling 1(800) 843-9162. (Note: ACA's endorsement of practice management firms does not extend to legal, accounting or other professional advice.) ACA LEADERS HIT THE CONVENTION CIRCUIT (ACA IS EVERYWHERE) This past weekend, ACA was represented at a number of state Conventions: Dr. Don Krippendorf, ACA vice president, traveled to Kentucky to speak at the Kentucky Chiropractic Association convention. Dr. John Dull, Georgia delegate, had an ACA luncheon in conjunction with this weekend's GCA convention. His alternate conducted an educational session. Dr. Mike Taylor, Oklahoma delegate, gave a 15 minute presentation to approximately 100 doctors who attended an Oklahoma license renewal seminar this weekend. Dr. Tony Hamm, North Carolina delegate, represented the ACA at a Foot Levelers seminar. Dr. Glenn Manceaux of Louisiana represented and promoted ACA at the Louisiana State convention. Earlier in the week, he addressed the students at Texas Chiropractic College as well as the students at Logan College of Chiropractic. Dr. Richard Bruns, Maine delegate, spoke to the doctors attending the Maine Chiropractic Association convention. ACA CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE RED CROSS OVER $20,000 Members and friends of the ACA continue to respond to our request to contribute to the American Red Cross in support of the relief efforts in Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania and New York. Nearly $6,000 came in this past week, bri |
|
This web site is best viewed with
|
. 
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
|
