|
|
 |
HSI reimburses hospitals for photocopies
HIS (HealthSystems of Illinois) sent a memo to all hospitals stating the following:
HSI reimburses hospitals for photocopies of charts requested and received for retrospective review of participants in the Illinois Medicaid Assistance Program. The reimbursement rate has increased to $0.10 per page effective 06/01/06. For a two-sided copy the reimbursement is $0.20 cents.
The reimbursement will be mailed quarterly to the attention of the Medicaid Liaison.
The reimbursement and listing for all cases received by HSI for the time period listed above.
April 2006 – May 2006 - $0.07 per page
June 2006 - $0.10 per page
If there are any questions about the process and/or this information, please contact the HSI helpline at (800) 418-4045.
|
ILHIMA receives first place in AHIMA’s Core Service Achievement Award
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, contact:
Theresa Reynolds
Public Relations Manager
312/233-1159
312/233-1459 (fax)
Theresa.reynolds@ahima.org
http://www.ahima.org
LOCAL HEALTHCARE ASSOCIATION RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION
CHICAGO, July XX—The Illinois Health Information Management Association (ILHIMA) was awarded first place in the Legislative and Regulatory Advocacy category of the second annual American Health Information Management Association’s (AHIMA) Core Service Achievement Awards. The awards recognize excellence in the AHIMA’s Component State Association’s (CSA) efforts, as well as provide all of AHIMA’s 52 CSAs with information and ideas that can be applied to their own state.
ILHIMA was recognized for its progressive efforts in affecting public policy surrounding the health information management (HIM) profession. ILHIMA developed an advocacy tool kit for members to use when meeting with their state representatives. Additionally, a letter writing campaign initiated by ILHIMA helped them in their efforts to secure a seat on the Illinois Electronic Health Records Taskforce. This taskforce was charged with developing a plan for the development and utilization of electronic health records in Illinois.
"CSA’s serve as an important forum for communicating national issues and keeping members informed of regional affairs affecting health information management," stated Jill Callahan Dennis, JD, RHIA, AHIMA president. "We are honored to award ILHIMA with a Core Service Achievement Award for their work and for serving as an example to other CSA’s."
The awards announcement took place Saturday, July 15, at AHIMA’s 2006 Leadership Conference in Chicago.
ILHIMA is an affiliate of the AHIMA, the premier association of health information management (HIM) professional. AHIMA’s 50,000 members are dedicated to the effective management of personal health information needed to deliver quality healthcare to the public. Founded in 1928 to improve the quality of medical records, AHIMA is committed to advancing the HIM profession in an increasingly electronic and global environment through leadership in advocacy, education, certification and lifelong learning.
|
Annual Adjustment of Copying Fees - January 2007
Annual adjustment of copying fees as required under 735 ILCS 5/8-2006
Effective: January 2007
Click here for more information on 2007 copy fees.
|
Copy Fee Questions
In response to the questions we've received regarding annual adjustment for copying fees, please see the following excerpts from Illinois Statutes. This first one states that the IL Comptroller has the authority to adjust copy fees every Jan. 20:
(735 ILCS 5/8-2006) Sec. 8-2006. Copying fees; adjustment for inflation. Beginning in 2003, every January 20, the copying fee limits established in Sections 8-2001, 8-2003, 8-2004, and 8-2005 shall automatically be increased or decreased, as applicable, by a percentage equal to the percentage change in the consumer price index-u during the preceding 12-month calendar year. "Consumer price index-u" means the index published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor that measures the average change in prices of goods and services purchased by all urban consumers, United States city average, all items, 1982-84 = 100. The new amount resulting from each annual adjustment shall be determined by the Comptroller and made available to the public on January 20 of every year. (Source: P.A. 92-228, eff. 9-1-01.)
The following explains that "practitioner" means any health care practitioner and therefore the statute applies to all physicians whether in a hospital or clinic or private office.
(735 ILCS 5/8-2003) (from Ch. 110, par. 8-2003) Sec. 8-2003. Records of health care practitioners. In this Section, "practitioner" means any health care practitioner, including a physician, dentist, podiatrist, advanced practice nurse, physician assistant, clinical psychologist, or clinical social worker. The term includes a medical office, health care clinic, health department, group practice, and any other organizational structure for a licensed professional to provide health care services. The term does not include a health care facility as defined in Section 8-2001.
Every practitioner shall, upon the request of any patient who has been treated by such practitioner, permit the patient and the patient's practitioner or authorized attorney to examine and copy the patient's records, including but not limited to those relating to the diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, history, charts, pictures and plates, kept in connection with the treatment of such patient. Such request for examining and copying of the records shall be in writing and shall be delivered to such practitioner. Such written request shall be complied with by the practitioner within a reasonable time after receipt by him or her at his or her office or any other place designated by him or her. The requirements of this Section shall be satisfied within 30 days of the receipt of a written request. If the practitioner needs more time to comply with the request, then within 30 days after receiving the request, the practitioner must provide the requesting party with a written statement of the reasons for the delay and the date by which the requested information will be provided. In any event, the practitioner must provide the requested information no later than 60 days after receiving the request.
The practitioner shall be reimbursed by the person requesting such records at the time of such copying, for all reasonable expenses, including the costs of independent copy service companies, incurred by the practitioner in connection with such copying not to exceed a $20 handling charge for processing the request for copies, and 75 cents per page for the first through 25th pages, 50 cents per page for the 26th through 50th pages, and 25 cents per page for all pages in excess of 50 (except that the charge shall not exceed $1.25 per page for any copies made from microfiche or microfilm), and actual shipping costs. These rates shall be automatically adjusted as set forth in Section 8-2006. The physician or other practitioner may, however, charge for the reasonable cost of all duplication of record material or information that cannot routinely be copied or duplicated on a standard commercial photocopy machine such as x-ray films or pictures.
A health care practitioner must provide the public with at least 30 days prior notice of the closure of the practitioner's practice. The notice must include an explanation of how copies of the practitioner's records may be accessed by patients. The notice may be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the area in which the health care practitioner's practice is located.
Failure to comply with the time limit requirement of this Section shall subject the denying party to expenses and reasonable attorneys' fees incurred in connection with any court ordered enforcement of the provisions of this Section. (Source: P.A. 92-228, eff. 9-1-01; 93-87, eff. 7-2-03.)Regards, ILHIMA
|
AHIMA Advocacy Request
Dear AHIMA Member,
AHIMA is involved in deliberations with congressional representatives concerning the future adoption of ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS (for inpatient services) as a HIPAA standard. We are writing you to enlist your support for our efforts to ensure that the legislative language that permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services to adopt ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS (for inpatient services) as a HIPAA standard remains in the final version of the "Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act" that emerges from the House and Senate conference committee.
To support our efforts, all that you need to do is visit the Advocacy Action Center of the AHIMA Advocacy Assistant at www.ahima.org/dc/aa, read the Action Alert concerning the "Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act" and ICD-10, follow the easy directions in the Action Center, personalize the letter to your elected officials and either send it via e-mail or download and send on your letterhead. Please review the letter because it does contain areas for you to add personal information. The progress that we make with this letter writing campaign is critical to the survival of this important legislative language so please take a few minutes and complete your letter today.
AHIMA has worked very closely with the drafters of this legislative language and they are well aware of the current deliberations of the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS). The legislative language contained in the Title IX, section 942(d) of HR 1, the House passed "Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003," specifically states that the Secretary of Health and Human Services may adopt ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS (for inpatient services) within a year of the enactment of this language if the NCVHS does not provide a recommendation to the Secretary. NCVHS was supposed to provide a recommendation to the Secretary in November 2002 but failed to do so.
Although this campaign is open to all AHIMA members through the Advocacy Action Center, this e-mail request is targeted to those of you who live in key congressional districts and states. If you live in a congressional district or state whose federally elected official is either on the House/Senate Conference Committee, the House Ways and Means Committee, the House Energy and Commerce Committee or the Senate Finance Committee, you are receiving this e-mail. The members of these congressional committees are specifically tasked in dealing with Medicare issues. These elected officials will also be receiving a hand-delivered letter from AHIMA, a co-signed letter from AHIMA and other supporting organizations, and an ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS fact sheet.
We truly need your assistance with this issue so please join us in helping our policymakers lay the groundwork for a 21st century healthcare system by sending a letter to your elected officials today. Helping us advocate is only a few clicks away in the Advocacy Action Center of the Advocacy Assistant at www.ahima.org/dc/aa. If you would like some background information on our coding positions, you can visit the Resources Section of the Advocacy Assistant.
Thanks for your help and do not hesitate to contact me if I can provide any assistance!
Don Asmonga, MBA
Government Relations Manager
AHIMA
1730 M Street, NW
Suite 409
Washington, DC 20036
(202)659-9440
(202)659-9422 (FAX)
Asmonga@AHIMA.org
|
Do you know where to find HOT news?
Check our your ILHIMA Community of Practice (CoP) for the most current news about your state association.
• Community NEWS Upcoming seminars, meetings, Association news.
• Community LINKS Internet links to sites important to HIM professionals.
• Community RESOURCES Current events documents, Association listings.
• Community DISCUSSIONS Questions/answers posted by members, discussion of current topics, valuable updates.
• Community POLLS How do members feel about______? How many members prefer______? Find out how other Illinois members "vote" in polls.
How to join ILHIMA CoP
• Go to the AHIMA Web site www.ahima.org. Click on "Members Only" then "Communities of Practice".
• This brings you to the home page for the Communities of Practice.
• Enter your User ID (which is your AHIMA number)
• Enter your password (which is set as your last name until you change it)
• Click "Log On"
• You will then be taken directLY to YOUR personal page or if it doesn't come up select "My Personal Page"
• Go to "Join/Visit Communities"
• Select "G" for geographic to find the Illinois Community
• Check the box to the right of the "Geographic, Illinois" this will make you a member of that community.
• Go down to bottom of page and click on "Join Communities"
• Once you have joined a community, it will now show up on your Personal Page and you simply have
Your ILHIMA CoP is One-Stop Shopping for all the latest news for Illinois members.
|
|
|
|
