Monday's Information for Mississippi Family Physicians
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MISSISSIPPI STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH:
Last Friday morning, the MAFP board met by conference call with State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs. Dr. Dobbs and your leadership discussed guidelines for reopening clinics, guidelines for nursing home care, and resources for PPE. Later Friday, Dr. Dobbs issued
detailed guidelines for clinics
. For elective surgeries, a chart in the order outlines Tier 2 and 3 surgeries are the only ones permitted. It encourages Telehealth first and outlines how outpatients at clinics must be screened for COVID-19 prior to treatment. It sets out guidelines for social distancing in clinics and best practices for clinic staffing.
Two of our members have shared their guidelines for nursing homes and hospitals that might be helpful until we receive uniform guidelines.
Disclaimer: The MAFP is sharing this for informational purposes only. Physicians need to make their own decisions based on their patients and resources.
JOINT LETTER TO GOV. REEVES AND DREW SNYDER
: Over the weekend, MAFP signed on to a
letter to Gov. Tate Reeves and Division of Medicaid Director Drew Snyder
in regard to Telehealth coverage, well visits and delays in credentialing. The letter was co-signed by representatives of the American Academy of Pediatrics Mississippi Chapter, the Miss. State Medical Association and the Mississippi Medical and Surgical Association.
DIVISION OF MEDICAID PHYSICIAN CALL THIS THURSDAY
: The Division of Medicaid's staff, including DOM medical director Dr. Carlos Latorre, MAFP vice president, will host a virtual town hall meeting on Thursday, April 30 from 3-4 pm. Division of Medicaid staff will discuss Telehealth coding and billing questions.
Submit questions
- about billing and coding only - in advance and we will forward them to the Division of Medicaid. Three ways to access the call on April 30:
- Call 312-626-6799 to listen
- Connect to the meeting using Zoom with meeting access code 976 7705 6660
- Watch on Facebook live on the MSMA Facebook page
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD:
On Friday, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi released a revised
Pandemic Telemedicine Policy
. Its Telehealth policy is extended through May 31, 2020 and "will be reassessed as needed." It outlines that physicians and nurse practitioners may bill for new/established patient evaluation and management codes up to a Level 3 with a place of service 02 (Telehealth) if they are provided by telephone or using visual equipment, as long as the physician or NP speaks directly to the patient.
GOVERNOR'S EXECUTIVE ORDER
: Governor Tate Reeves, at a press conference Friday, announced he would not extend the statewide shelter-in-place order that expired today. In its place he issued
Executive Order #1477
Friday, which outlines "safer-at-home" restrictions, ending May 11. Generally, gatherings of more than 10 people are still prohibited, evictions are still suspended, and restaurants and bars are limited to drive-thru, curbside and delivery. Additionally, beaches, parks, gyms and businesses in the recreation industry will remain closed. Many businesses which were formerly designated non-essential will now be allowed to reopen.
Note: With the shelter-in-place orders changing periodically, be aware this does NOT change or affect the other measures put in place by the State of Emergency declaration, which has no end date (i.e. shelter-in-place changes don't change the Telemedicine allowance).
CMS REEVALUATES ACCELERATED PAYMENT PROGRAM AND SUSPENDS ADVANCE PAYMENT PROGRAM
: On Sunday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
announced
it was reevaluating the amounts paid under its Accelerated Payment Program and suspending the Advance Payment Program to Part B suppliers effective immediately. The agency made this announcement following the successful payment of more than $100 billion to health care providers and suppliers through these programs. Funding will still be available through the Provider Relief Fund. See the article below for more about this fund.
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT
: The MAFP staff will collect resources for PPE to share with membership in the next few days. If you have information that is not listed on our
website
, please let us
know
. We encourage member family physicians to reach out to your local churches and other community groups to ask them to sew cloth masks for your clinic staff and patients.
CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES
:
- Telehealth Toolkit: CMS announced the release of a Telehealth Toolkit to accelerate state use of Telehealth in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Programs (CHIP). Both Medicaid and CHIP programs are jointly administered by the state and federal governments, and coverage and payment policies vary by state within federal parameters. This toolkit will help states identify policies which may impede the rapid deployment of Telehealth when providing care.
- MIPS Payments for Clinical Trials: CMS is encouraging clinicians who participate in the Quality Payment Program (QPP) to contribute to scientific research and evidence to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinicians may now earn credit in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MiPS) for participation in a clinical trial and reporting clinical information by attesting to the new COVID-19 Clinical Trials improvement activity. This action will provide vital data to help drive improvement in patient care and develop innovative best practices to manage the spread of COVID-19 within communities.
FREE CODING WEBINARS
: We have reached out to one of our former CME presenters, Dr. Nick Ulmer, a Certified Professional Coder, AAFP Fellow and member of the South Carolina AFP. He has put together
two webinars that you can watch for no charge
:
- Introduction Video is first (3 minutes) then the other two videos are listed underneath the intro video
- Virtual Options of Care Delivery (25 minutes) - Codes relating to Telehealth and the broadened scope of virtual outreach
- Practical Applications of Telemedicine (10 minutes) - Dr. Ulmer shares some case discussions using the codes discussed in the first webinar
IMPLEMENTING TELEMEDICINE ON THE FLY, ON A SHOESTRING
: Does this sound like your practice? Learn from a doc who's been there, Dr. Russell Miller of Pennsylvania.
Read his day-by-day account
of implementing Telehealth into his practice, including staff education, self-education and what he's learned so far.
WEBINARS FROM ALEDADE:
The MAFP is working with other state chapters to host a series of webinars in the coming weeks with independent family physicians speaking about their experiences during the pandemic, including these topics.
- Sustaining Telehealth in Family Medicine
- Driving Short- and Long-Term Practice Financial Success
- The Future of Family Medicine in the Post-COVID-19 World
Our thanks to Aledade ACO for working to create the webinars. Look for more information soon.
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Mississippi's Coronavirus Hotline is now being staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call 1-877-978-6453. The CDC hotline specifically for health care workers is 770-488-7100
.
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HEALTH ALERTS
: If you would like to receive MS State Department of Health update calls and notices, sign up for the
MS Health Alert Network
.
OUR WEBSITE
: Please continue to check the
MAFP Coronavirus page
for updated information and links to important resources.
NEWS ROUNDUP
: To be added to the list to receive our almost-daily News Roundup, e-mail
Kristen Kern
.
MAFP will continue to send updates and resources as we receive them and we will add them to our page above.
MAFP
755 Avignon Drive
Ridgeland MS 39157
(601) 853-3302
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