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Special "News You Can Use" <> Love Your Heart!



Special SDCMS “News You Can Use” <> Love Your Heart!
— Thursday, February 6, 2014

Physicians: Please Participate in Love Your Heart This February 14! All you need to do is track the blood pressures you provide your patients during the course of your Feb. 14 workday. Reducing heart attacks and strokes in our community is a goal we can all rally around. As part of the County of San Diego HHSA’s Love Your Heart initiative, the SDCMS Foundation is working with private practice physicians to increase blood pressure screenings and educate patients on how to reduce risk factors. You can demonstrate to the community that we are leaders in this public health education effort. To participate in Love Your Heart, all you need to do is tally the number of blood pressure screens you do during the course of your workday on Friday, February 14, and fax back the tally sheet to the SDCMS Foundation by 4:00 pm that day — that's it!

If you have any questions, please email Francesca.Mueller@SDCMS.org, and please send Francesca an email as soon as possible to let us know that you're participating. Let's show the County HHSA the power of our physician voice in improving the health of our community!

CURES Sign-up Event on Feb. 28: On Friday, February 28, a Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) representative will be at SDCMS’s offices from 9am to 5pm to sign up all San Diego County physicians to gain access to the CURES system. Click here for details and to reserve your spot! Note: If you have already signed up for CURES, you do not need to sign up again.

Physicians: Do You Know if You're Contracted to See Covered California Patients? You could have been opted in without your knowledge, depending on your contracts. For more information on which health plans are participating in Covered California, and for information on how to check your participation status with these plans, SDCMS members are invited to CLICK HERE to download a matrix that will help you answer these questions. For assistance with logging in to SDCMS's website, call SDCMS at (858) 565-8888 or email Membership@SDCMS.org

The ICD-10 Implementation Compliance Date Is October 1, 2014 — Are You Ready? ICD-10 will bring significant changes to all physician practices, and, if you're not prepared, you may face significant financial impact, including claim denials, cash-flow issues, and decreased productivity. Member Physicians: Please click here to take advantage of SDCMS's member-physician ICD-10 resources — all free benefits of membership — and let us know if you have any questions at Membership@SDCMS.org. In addition, ensure your office manager or practice administrator is signed up for SDCMS's online office manager forum — a superb venue for your staff to share ideas, brainstorm soluti ons, and troubleshoot problems (member physicians are welcome to join as well). Click here to join!

CMA Practice Resources (CPR) for February:

  • Surviving the Second Month of Covered California • Click Here
  • CMA Tool to Identify Physician Participation Status in Exchange Plans • Click Here
  • Important New Brochure Available for Patients • Click Here
  • Anthem Blue Cross to Move Eligibility, Benefits, and Claim Status Inquiry Functions to Availity Web Portal in March • Click Here
  • Duals Demonstration Project Announces Additional Delays • Click Here
  • Did You Know You Can Request Reconsideration if You're Getting Dinged With a 2% Medicare eRx Penalty? • Click Here
  • CMS Updates EFT Authorization Agreement • Click Here
  • Noridian Sends Out Another Wave of Medicare Revalidation Requests • Click Here
  • DHCS Pays Over $100 Million to Primary Care Physicians in Initial Retroactive Medi-Cal Rate Increase Payment • Click Here
  • SAVE THE DATE: Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton Will Headline the 2014 Leadership Academy • Click Here
  • UMVS Offering TRICARE Provider Training Webinars • Click Here
  • The Coding Corner: Quick Tips for Easy “Add-on” Coding • Click Here

SDMCS’ Discounted Disability Insurance Premium May Be Raised: If you submit prior to April 1, you can lock in the older/cheaper rates. Contact Brian Gerwe at SDCMS at (858) 300-2782 or at Brian.Gerwe@SDCMS.org for additional information. Click here to request an illustration.

“All of our actions take their hue from the complexion of the heart, as landscapes their variety from light.” — Francis Bacon, English Author (1561–1626)



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