Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

Plus: Medicare no longer requires you to perform a screening EKG with the WTM exam -- but it's still an optional component. If your physicians perform "Welcome to Medicare" (WTM) exams, also called an Initial Preventive Physical Exam (IPPE), you'll have one less payment battle to wage this year. Effective Jan. 1, the Medicare deductible does not apply to the Welcome to Medicare exam, announced CMS's Amy Bassano in her presentation "Medicare Physician Payment Schedule 2009 Changes and Beyond" at the American Medical Association's December CPT symposium in Chicago. "This program aspect caused a lot of criticism," she said. Now patients who come in for the required enrollment exam will not have the exam applied to meeting their deductibles. What it means: Your patients may be happier. This change really benefits the patients, says Rebecca Marthaller, CMRS, owner of Lower Columbia Medical Billing in Longview, Wash. "The doctor will be reimbursed the same [...]