I write my last message to you as president, I am reflecting on all that has happened this year and how fast time flies by. I think about all the hard work our volunteers accomplish to make HBMA a better organization. I am thinking about the hard work that Brad Lund and all the people at ISAM have put forth as well as our support from Capitol Associates and all the other support staff. I think of the continued support of our vendors and their efforts to bring products and services to help us keep up with our rapidly-changing world. Finally, I think of the unbelievable work your board members have provided as they tackled important issues and worked through them with your best interests in mind. I do not have the space to thank all the people who contributed so much, so I will not try. I can only say thank you. I learned so much from this group of people and I am so pleased to have had the privilege to be a part of the leadership to try to carry out the goals we set in place in January. Finally, I have said so often that I would serve if I could be of help, and I truly pray that I have. now, on to the future. this next year for both our industry and hbma will be truly a year of even more change. We will continue to address the issues that we have seen over the last several years: issues like consolidation, cost control, new technology, and new regulations. furthermore, several events in the next year will require our time in major new ways. i will touch on four of them. first, beginning in january, many of the major provisions of the affordable care act will be implemented and will impact our clients, our businesses, and us as individuals on every front. to make matters even more interesting, some of the regulations are still up in the air as i write this message, so we will need to be flexible. secondly, in the fall of next year, our world will be turned upside down when the scheduled conversion from icd-9 diagnostic coding to icd-10 will take place. every facet of our coding world will be new. We will need to make modifications or replace our computer systems. We will have to work with clearinghouses and payors to revamp how claims are processed. documentation PRESIDENT’S message from our clients will change significantly and we must help educate our clients on how to deal with this new coding system. this singular event has the potential to impact our industry and businesses more than anything else in our entire history. by now you should have already started getting ready and are testing every element of the icd-10 transition to make it as smooth as possible. if you haven’t already begun to do so, start now! thirdly, as a result of all of these changes in our industry, President-elect jeanne gilreath led a team to develop a comprehensive strategic business initiative. the team looked at who we are as an organization: who our current members are and will be in the future. this detailed consideration of our present and future status has allowed the president-elect's team to see a solid value proposition for hbma and to determine what tools will be needed in the years to come. lastly, we will need to modify how we carry out our fiduciary responsibly as a board and paid support team. much work has been put forth this year looking internally to confirm that we are organized, staffed, and resourced to deal with all of these changes to ensure the health of hbma for the future. We have developed the vision and priorities and have looked at the resources needed. i am confident that we have prepared the association for what is to come. this is the governance role of your board. there are exciting and challenging times ahead – i see great opportunities and much to do. We have a great board and dedicated leadership in place, and i look forward to continuing to help where i can. in closing, i thank all who have helped me this year. there is no way we could have done anything without everyone’s dedicated assistance. i am so proud of all those who have given so tirelessly to do what we needed to accomplish. i wish i could name them all, but what a tremendous honor to serve you and them! thank you for allowing me to serve as your president this year. it has truly been an honor! Jud Neal, CHBME, HBMA President jsneal@pbnmed.com As Moving Forward the journal of the healthcare billing and management association 3
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