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March - April 2009 •
Volume 14, Issue 2
Tough Times Don’t Last, Tough Companies Do
Message from the President
Randal Roat, CHBME
Like many, you are probably finding it difficult to remain bullish on our economy, government, and industry. With the plethora of new regulations and financial uncertainty, people are conserving and focusing their activities and expenses. Click for more

Staying Afloat in a Drowning Market
Six Steps to Shore up Your Financial Health
By Richard S. Cooper, Esq. and Shawn M. Riley, Esq.
Some healthcare billing companies are experiencing a variety of operational and financial challenges that, coupled with credit market issues, are putting their very survival at risk. In addition to significant concerns about the ever-decreasing access to capital and the increased costs of available capital, the billing industry as a whole is feeling the strain from higher administration costs, significant increases in required technological expenditures, declining compensation from customers, and increased competition. Click for more

Say Goodbye to Disappointing Hires
HBMA News
By Bill Carns, HBMA Technology Chair, and John Howard, Ph.D.
Have you ever hired someone who disappointed you? Traditional hiring methods are inherently flawed. They tend to be paper-based systems that restrict the pool of applicants and provide decision-makers with false and unreliable information. Click for more

Spotlight On: The Organization Effectiveness Committee
HBMA News
By Sherri Dumford, CHBME
The Organization Effectiveness Committee is one of the committees formed in recent years to support the mission and vision of HBMA. It was spawned from the work of the 2006 Strategic Planning Meeting. So let’s begin at the beginning and talk a little about the Strategic Planning process that occurs within the leadership of HBMA. Click for more

Speaker Preview: Getting to the Core of the Problem
Simplifying Administrative Data Exchange with the CORE Rules
By Jonathan Grau, MSc
Nearly everyone is familiar with the doctor’s office clipboard and the phone calls, faxes, or computer work that staff must do at patient check-in to verify insurance coverage. Most patients think that these front-office activities, which occur in virtually every practice, clinic, and hospital in America, are just par for the course. Click for more

Speaker Preview: Notes from the Inside
Pushing Back on Negotiating Computer Contracts
By Mark Grossman, Esq.
Businesses buy computer-related goods and services all the time. For example, they buy consultants and technicians’ time, custom programming, software, and hardware. The way the parties usually handle the paperwork is that the vendor gives the customer a form and the customer signs it. After all, the form is printed so it can't be changed, right? Wrong! Click for more

Speaker Preview: Solving the Paperwork Puzzle
How to Submit Bills for VA Healthcare Programs
By Glenn A. Johnson
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has three programs that involve veterans and their dependents who receive treatment from external healthcare providers. All of them are managed by the VA’s Chief Business Office and its sub-directorates, the Fee Program Office and the VA Health Administration Center (HAC), both of which are located in Denver, Colorado. Click for more

Bad Behavior
How Ethical Are You When a Contract Gets Broken?
By J. Dennis Mock
As 2008 became 2009, I couldn’t help but reflect on the good and the bad that occurred during the previous year. It brought memories of connections to previous events in other years. Due to some significant issues I observed in the closing months of 2008, I was drawn back to the conference room at the American Collector’s Association (ACA) headquarters in the early 1990s, where the details of the newly formed International Billing Association (IBA)—soon to become HBMA—were being hammered out. Click for more

Put a Plug in It!
Tips for Capturing Money that Slips through the Cracks
By Melody W. Mulaik, MSHS, PCS, FCS, RCC
It’s no revelation for me to state that in today’s economy you can’t afford to let any revenue slip away. Whether the economy is good, bad, or otherwise, as business owners we can never afford to spend too much and collect too little. So let’s focus on a few key processes that you should review to ensure that you aren’t losing money through cracks that you can easily plug. Click for more

Spring Office Cleaning
Time to Clear Out the Dead Wood
By David F. Jakielo, CHBME
First the Bad News: The economy is tanking and unemployment is rising. Now the Good News (for some).... Click for more

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