Practice Management Alert

Physicians in Maine are testing the "e-visit" market. Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield and Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems (EMHS) have partnered with doctors at Eastern Maine Medical Center (EMMC) in Bangor and The Aroostook Medical Center (TAMC) in Presque Isle for a pilot program that will allow the doctors to communicate electronically with their patients.

In the initial phase, Anthem will reimburse the hospitals for communicating about non-emergency situations, such as appointment scheduling, reviewing test results, and requesting refills. Other states, including Massachusetts and California, have conducted similar pilot programs.

In other news: Despite CMS's plans to downgrade your 2010 conversion factor by 21.29 percent, the government stepped in at the last minute and offered you a quick boost -- at least temporarily. Congress voted to delay a decrease to the conversion factor until March 1. Therefore, you'll benefit from a conversion factor of $36.0846 for dates of service between Jan. 1, 2010 and Feb. 28, 2010.

CMS issued MLN Matters article MM6796, which announced that due to RVU adjustments, the conversion factor during the two-month temporary pay fix period would not remain at the 2009 level of $36.0666, but would instead rise two cents to $36.0846. The relative value units (RVUs), however, remain at the 2010 levels.

To read the MLN Matters article, visit www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNMattersArticles/downloads/MM6796.pdf.