Fall Conference Keynote Speakers and Pre-Conference Programs Announced

HBMA certainly promises engaging keynote speakers to open and close the 2010 Annual Fall Conference in St. Louis. Tim Wright, founder of Wright Results, Inc., and William Jessee, MD, FACMPE, FACPM, president and CEO of MGMA, will serve as the show’s opening and closing keynote speakers respectively. The HBMA annual conference embodies the mantra that ‘Change isn’t coming, it’s already here.’ Each year, HBMA designs its conferences so that attendees can walk away with actionable knowledge and tactics that they can immediately apply within their organizations to improve medical billing and management processes. This year’s keynote addresses and pre-conference sessions will highlight the overarching theme of change by offering solutions to more effectively engage employees, anticipate healthcare billing challenges and proactively address today’s most pressing compliance and technology issues.

Tim Wright’s opening keynote address, Creating Higher Levels of Engagement, will focus on how to apply leadership talents to create greater employee engagement. Scheduled for Sunday, September 12 from 1:30–3pm, the session will outline how improved employee engagement can lead to a stronger business identity, increased client loyalty and reduced business expenses as well as more committed employees and better talent management. The closing keynote address, Paying for Health Services: What’s Likely to Happen by William Jessee, MD, will explore the profound billing system changes likely to occur in the near future, why change is inevitable, when those changes may occur and how best to prepare for them. Beginning Sunday, September 12 from 8am—12pm, Holly Louie, RN, CHBME, PCS, and Robert Burleigh, CHBME, will host a pre-conference program entitled, Hot Topics in Compliance, which will explore real-life compliance scenarios from billing companies across the nation. In the second pre-conference program, Technology Update 2010, presented by Robert Spencer, PhD, attendees will learn about the most significant challenges for technology in 2010/2011, explore ways to extend the longevity of existing XP systems and identify measures to encrypt and protect sensitive information.

Beyond working to ensure that this year’s speakers and conference content are as compelling and informative as possible, we’ve engaged with leaders from HBMA membership to ensure that we were able to meet their fiscal requirements. Registration fees at HBMA’s national conferences provide significant value when compared to similar professional conferences and educational meetings. Not only is the cost of airfare, hotels and dining in St. Louis very reasonable, but we have also decided to kick off this year’s conference on a Sunday and wrap up on Tuesday. For many attendees, this means they only have to be away from the office for two days instead of the typical three or four days, enabling them to maximize their productivity.

HBMA’s host hotel, the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark, is ideally located downtown and within walking distance to some of the Gateway City's most acclaimed attractions, historic landmarks, entertainment, restaurants and shopping. The conference, which is being held from September 12-14, 2010, will kick off with a series of pre-conference programs focused on compliance and technology topics and will be followed by two-and-a-half days of educational sessions, legislative insights and networking opportunities for the medical billing community. To learn more or register for the HBMA 2010 Annual Conference, visit the event page at www.hbma.org.