Author: AHIMA

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: July 2012

If you bill fee-for-service programs, your claims will be subject to review by the Recovery Audit Contractor Program (RAC). That was the promise made by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services when it expanded its once-experimental program to all 50 states in 2010. The RAC's mission....

Author: Greene, Adam H

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2012

The HIPAA privacy and security rules need not act as an obstacle to efficient communications, but keeping texting compliant requires planning and diligence.

Text (or SMS) messaging has become nearly ubiquitous on mobile devices. According to one survey, approximately 72 perce....

Author: Dimick, Chris

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: April 2012

It has been a decade since the first privacy officers took their jobs in response to the HIPAA privacy rule. A slew of changes since then have added more responsibility, required more skills, and demanded more time of them than anyone could have imagined.

When Nancy Davis, R....

Author: Derlink, Amy L; Schembari, Elaine

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

Responding to an audit can be hectic and stressful, but HIM professionals must remember to hold external record reviewers accountable to good privacy and security practices.

When you visit the hair salon, take an exercise class, or sit across from a financial planner, you expect them....

Author: Easterling, Sharon

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

Learning from last year's denials and preparing for what's ahead will help providers avoid being stung in 2012.


When the Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) permanent program began in 2009, providers were hopeful that the process for identifying underpayments and overpayments w....

Author: Tomes, Jonathan P.

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

HHS's renewed interest in auditing for compliance is a good reminder to covered entities to ensure their privacy and security programs are up to date.

The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) announcement of a new program to audit compliance with the HIPAA priva....

Author: McLendon, Kelly

Source: Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: March 2012

There has been a lack of enforcement of the privacy and security rules ever since HIPAA's inception. As such the adoption of comprehensive HIPAA compliance programs has lagged behind EHR development and implementation.

This in turn has caused little funding to be budgeted by provide....

Author: Wilson, Donna D

Source: Journal of AHIMA - Coding Notes

Publication Date: March 2012

The Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) demonstration program found that "most of the overpayment amounts collected by the RACs (about 85 percent) were from inpatient hospital providers," and "almost half of the improper payments were the result of incorrect coding."1 Things have changed with....

Author: AHIMA

Source: AHIMA practice brief attachment

Publication Date: February 2012

Action Item Responsible Party Comments Completion Date
Obtain a list of all health information and technology systems. For example:
Practice A Encoder
Practice B Encoder
Practice A Lab Module
Practice B Lab Module
Practice A Billing System
Practice B Billing Syste....

Author: AHIMA

Source: AHIMA practice brief | Journal of AHIMA

Publication Date: February 2012

Editor's note: This practice brief supplants the November 1996 brief "Managing Health Information in Facility Mergers and Acquisitions."



Healthcare's rapidly changing environment has prompted an increase in mergers and acquisitions as facilities and providers strive to s....