Newsletter
Salt Lake City, Utah Volume 7, Issue 4 January 2000
President's Message
By David Young, Chapter President
Dear Colleagues, Happy New Year!
By now we have had to get accustomed to the
fact we survived the doom and gloom of those Y2K folks who said our world
would come to a screeching halt at midnight 12/31/99. It did not happen, and
it is a bright new day. As survivors of the 20th century, we can now face a
New Millennium and the Year 2000 with hope and optimism for a wonderful
future.
What a great fall meeting we had in Zion. We
were rewarded with outstanding presentations, humorous entertainment, balmy
weather, unlimited scenery, vigorous hiking, and networking with colleagues. I
have nothing but praise for all who had any part in its success. (Don't miss
the overview later in this newsletter or on our web site.) I would especially
like to thank our great membership for their support and participation. We had
record attendance! The Utah Chapter also received generous sponsorship from
the following Industrial Partners:
ARUP, BioMerieux, Dade-Behring, Ortho-Clinical
Diagnostics, Quest Diagnostics Inc., Remel, and Translogic.
With this great support, the Utah CLMA is able
to keep the cost of attendance down for the Fall Conference and for future
educational programs. I encourage our membership to show their appreciation to
the representatives of these companies. Plans are already in the works for our
Spring Conference in April at Park City.
The Utah Chapter is only as strong and successful as the membership and its leadership. I am inviting each of you to become more active this year in your Chapter by running for a leadership position, attending meetings, and communicating with us. Be informed. Get involved.
See you at the next Power Breakfast on January 26.
Utah Chapter Leader Recieves National CLMA Award
Paul Keoppel, Utah Chapter President Elect,
received the first Innovative Activity Award for the Volunteer Leaders of CLMA
Chapters. The Utah Chapter of the CLMA continues to maintain an outstanding
position as one of the best chapters in the country. This is due, in part, to
a strong and dedicated membership, corporate support, and hard working,
innovative leadership. This award was presented to Paul for his development of
the Utah web site as a new technology and medium for communication.
Development and operational costs have been minimal due to Paul's ingenuity
and many talents. This award is well deserved.
Elections
Please consider being involved in the planning and activities of CLMA. Nominate yourself or a colleague today!
There are four elected positions available for the February ballot. The positions and responsibilities are:
President-elect: Plan the Spring and Fall meetings, coordinate with the treasurer for expenditures for both meetings, attend the board retreat in the spring and all board meetings and national meeting. Assumes the responsibilities of Chapter President at the end of term. One Year Term
Secretary: Take minutes at all board meetings and disburse by mail or e-mail, maintain communication among board members, oversee chapter communications, chapter newsletter, meetings, and events and attend the board retreat and all board meetings. Two Year Term.
Board Member: Assist president-elect in the
planning of meetings to include workshop selection and vendor participation
coordination. Responsible for increasing membership, promoting the CLMA
organizations, obtaining input from the membership, and providing input at
board meetings. Participate in officer nominations and elections. Attend the
board retreat and all board meetings. Two Year Term - Two openings.
The board retreat is scheduled after elections to review the past year and plan for the year ahead. Board meetings follow Power Breakfasts and during the Spring and Fall meetings. The use of electronic communication reduces the time away from work. This opportunity not only gives you exposure to new ideas, but promotes new relationships with a dedicated and diverse group of colleagues. Please send any nominees to Susie Adams at susie.ceradams@aros.net, or give her a call (801) 596-2220.
Utah CLMA 2000 Spring Meeting
Planning is under way for our annual spring
conference. We hope to build on the success we enjoyed at our fall meeting in
November. As promised, the format will be substantially different that what
you've seen in the past. We no longer will be meeting jointly with the USCLS
group.
The spring meeting will be held on April 14, 2000 from 8 am to 5 pm. We have secured a meeting room at the Deer Valley Resort in Park City. Speakers are being selected. The format of the meeting will be 4 speakers on topics of interest to laboratory managers. Each speaker will speak for an hour and a half. We hope to have a representative from the Olympics address us at the luncheon.
Washington G2 Meeting Report
by Hyde Frederickson
Washington G-2 Reports
Lab Institute 1999
Arlington, Virginia
October 6-9, 1999
I had the opportunity, along with several
other Utah CLMA members, to attend the annual Lab Institute sponsored by
Washington G-2 Reports. As usual, this was a very useful meeting. Dennis
Weissman brings together government and industry leaders each October to
inform attendees on the latest matters of compliance and health care trends.
This year we learned many items of interest.
The 2000 CPT code changes were detailed along with the government's position
on implementation. There will be no traditional grace period where we could
use either the old or new codes for the first 3 months of the year. HCFA does
not want the new codes on revised panels (basic metabolic, comprehensive
metabolic, hepatic function, hepatitis) used until April 1, 2000. The allowed
amounts for 50 high volume procedures are being reviewed and will probably
change on April 1. There will be a change in pap smear payments.
State Medicaid programs will receive much more
attention in 2000. Investigation and enforcement actions are expected to
increase. On the other hand, Operation Bad Bundle activities, nationwide, are
on the decline. Other prominent targets for investigation are dialysis
laboratories and DRG payment windows.
Information technology was an area of emphasis. Laboratories must move into the Internet age in order to be competitive. Laboratories need to find new ways to communicate electronically with physicians and, perhaps, patients. Consumer access to health information on the Internet makes patients much more informed and could change the way laboratory tests are utilized.
Workshops covered a wide variety of topics,
too many to discuss here in detail. The range included medical necessity, ABNs,
pricing and billing concerns, medical privacy, documenting corrective actions,
the future of laboratory testing, developing a core lab, and technological
advances in cytology.
If you are involved in the compliance arena,
this is a meeting you should attend. Washington G-2 Reports does a great job
of staying in tune with the industry and government. The meeting provides
current and prospective information that can help us deal with the highly
complex issues of government regulations and policies. I recommend attendance.
Utah CLMA Fall Meeting Provided Entertainment and Education for Membership
By Kathy Logan
Utah CLMA members who attended the Fall
Meeting heard presentations that were humorous, entertaining, and educational.
There were two keynote speakers, a park ranger, and various vendors who
presented information.
Keynote speaker, Mike D. Bahr, Assistant Vice
President and Chief Actuary for IHC Health Plans, spoke about "Managed Care -
Where is it going?" With a series of slides, which definitely held the
audience's attention through their humor, he talked about the 10 Reasons You
Know You've Selected the Wrong HMO. Leading into each topic area, he described
the current industry and future trends.
The second keynote speaker, Rhonda Paige,
Training Coordinator and IHC University Campus Coordinator, presented a
workshop on "Planning for Results - Project Management Training." Using
Franklin-Covey materials, she taught the audience about the factors that cause
a project to fail and how to visualize, plan and implement a project. She
focused on the use of project mapping to create vision maps, hotspot maps, and
plan maps as tools for better communication, creativity, and goal setting.
At the group dinner, David Rachlis, a Zion
Park Ranger, shared an entertaining and educational slide show which
highlighted the parks in Southern Utah. Using slides that he shot while
touring and hiking through the parks, he described the geology, geography, and
history of the area.
Other speakers included vendors who supported
the meeting. Short presentations were given by representatives from Ortho
Clinical Diagnostics, Remel, Vitek (BioMerieux), Dade-Behring, Quest
Diagnostics, and ARUP Laboratories.
Those who had the opportunity to attend the
Fall Meeting were not disappointed in the range of topics, the artful
presentations, the education, or the entertainment provided by these speakers.
Health Care Policy Report
By Kathy Carlson
What is the CLMA Grassroots Network?
The CLMA Grassroots Network is made up of CLMA
members who are committed to becoming a "voice" for CLMA on federal issues at
the grassroots level.
What is my obligation?
The CLMA Grassroots Network asks that the
network participants:
Be proactive in educating legislators and their staffs on issues related to the laboratory.
* Respond to public policy issues concerning
CLMA.
The level of participation is up to the individual. To be effective however, CLMA encourages members to develop relationships with their congressional, state, and local elected representatives. These individuals are elected to serve you. By becoming a knowledgeable resource on laboratory issues, you will be considered a valued asset to their office. That relationship is the core of grassroots communications and becomes extremely valued when CLMA responds to a particular initiative and calls upon the network to make their voices heard. To join the CLMA Grassroots Network, or to request additional information, please contact: Kathy Ayres, Health Care Policy Analyst at the CLMA Executive Office, 610/995-9580 extension 232.
CLMA 1999 Health Care Policy Committee
Committee Charge
The Health-Care Policy Committee is charged as the primary group responsible for monitoring, reporting, and representing the membership in relevant health-care legislative, regulatory, and policy issues. The four key components of this charge include:
1. Identify and assess the needs of the constituents.
2. Educate constituents and the public on legislative, regulatory, or policy issues that may have an impact on them.
3. Formulate suggested courses of action (policy development) that represent the needs of the constituency and demonstrate leadership in the decision making process.
4. Effectively communicate or advocate these policies to effect the outcome in a manner that supports the mission and vision of the organization.
Committee Members
Kevin Watson, Chair
C. Anne Pontius, Board Liaison
Christine Diehl, Special Board Advisor
Jeff Boothe, Counsel
Kathy Ayres, Staff Liaison
Lynda L. Hunter, Member
Mary F. Walchak, Member
Christopher P. Young, Member
Donna Beasley, Member
Lawrence Berg, Member
Skip Keane, Member
Visit the national CLMA website: www.clma.org for further information.
Health Data Security Poised to Become Leading Compliance Concern
Many challenges face healthcare providers and
health plans in the new millennium. Perhaps one of the most significant is the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) which requires
some of the most sweeping changes the health care industry has seen in
decades. Bill Braithwaite, senior advisor on health information policy at the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, says HIPAA will have significant
impact on every player in the health care industry. This includes payers,
providers, health plans, government health programs, clearinghouses, billing
agents, and value-added networks. "HIPAA presents a great opportunity for
improving administrative efficiency in the health care industry. Realizing
this opportunity will require cooperation and compliance across the industry,"
cautioned Braithwaite, while addressing more than 100 health care executives
attending an EDS (NYSE: EDS) co-sponsored seminar in December on the business
impact of HIPAA. "In order for the entire industry to fully realize the
benefits of administrative simplification, health plans, health care
providers, and others must now become educated about the HIPAA standards."
HIPAA requires that health care organizations make changes in the business
operations and technology that make it possible to exchange electronic health
care transactions. The act establishes national standards for administrative
health care transactions, including claims, standards for procedure and
diagnosis code sets, and unique identification numbers for providers and
health plans. Additionally, health care entities must comply with new security
rules to ensure that individually identifiable health care information and
records are accessible only to authorized individuals. Missing the deadline to
comply could result in large fines or threaten the health care organization's
ability to conduct business.
Time lines for Privacy
Security Standards
HHS proposed in November a set of standards for medical records privacy. This was done after congress failed to meet the August deadline set by HIPAA for comprehensive privacy legislation. These standards apply to anyone who "furnishes, bills, or is paid for healthcare services" and then "transmits health information in electronic form." Under the proposal, plans and providers must appoint a privacy official and notify patients of their rights. Healthcare information may not be disclosed without patient consent, although broad exceptions exist, including payments and law enforcement needs. Patients have the right to see their records, correct them, and discover what has been disclosed. The work this year deadlocked over a patient's right to sue for unauthorized disclosure and the privacy rights of juveniles.
Due in December 1999:
Final rules setting a standard format for electronic transactions and code sets, and establishing national provider and employer identifiers
* Proposed rules for claims attachments and national health plan identifiers
Delayed until 2000:
Final security standards (so they will sync with privacy protections)
HHS may also work again on national individual identifiers (this was on hold pending action on privacy legislation or regulations).
Track these initiatives via the HHS Website: www.hhs.gov. The privacy proposal is posted at: http://aspe.hhs.gov/admnsimp
Sources: CLMA Website: www.clma.org Regulatory
News
G-2 Compliance Report November -December 1999
Local Members in the national
spotlight
We have three members of our Utah Chapter that have been invited to speak in national forums this year.
Diana Voorhees will be presenting a national CLMA teleconference on January 12, 2000. She will be speaking on "Billing and Reimbursement: What every manager needs to know." Since Diana is a Utah member, national CLMA is offering the program to our chapter at no charge. We will be listening to the teleconference at ARUP. The time is 1:00 to 2:30 pm. All are welcome to join us in the board room.
Hyde Frederickson, Compliance
Officer for IHC Laboratory Services, has been invited to speak at G2's
Compliance 2000. The meeting will be held in Tampa, Florida on March 2nd
and 3rd. Hyde will be discussing medical necessity and the ABN
process. He also will be a member of a group discussion panel.
Paul Keoppel, Compliance Administrator for IHC Laboratory Services, will be presenting at the Annual CLMA Conference and Exhibition in June 2000. He will be speaking at two sunrise seminars and a major breakout session. His topics are:
How to create a web site- the story behind the Utah Web site
Tools for the compliance officer
How to perform effective laboratory audits -
what to look for and where to find it
We congratulate them on their national
recognition.
New Members
Kim Hoover, Lab Supervisor, Heber Valley Medical Center,
IHC
K. Owen Ash, PhD,
Executive Vice President, Director of Business Development, A.R.U.P. Laboratories
Dr. Ash is a professor of Pathology at the
University of Utah School of Medicine. He is also the medical director of the
Trace Laboratory at ARUP. He is currently the Director of Business
Development, and formally served as the Chief Operations Officer at A.R.U.P.
Laboratories.
Denise Hardy, H.T. (ASCP) Group Manager, Anatomical Pathology A.R.U.P. Laboratories
Denise has over 23 years of laboratory
experience. Her role at ARUP includes management of the Autopsy, Cytopathology,
Gross Dissection, Hematopathology, Histology, and Surgical Pathology
Departments at A.R.U.P. and the University of Utah Medical Center.
WWW.UTAHCLMA.ORG
As announced at the fall Zion meeting, our chapter web site has moved to a new address. We now own our own domain, utahclma.org. Take the time to check out the various areas of the web site. Currently we have the following information online:
past issues of newsletters
meeting minutes
Power point slide presentations from past speakers
Fall meeting evaluation summary
Calendar for upcoming events
Email links to chapter leaders
Membership list
and much more
Industrial Partner Sponsorship
The Utah Chapter of CLMA is offering to industry a sponsorship program. The program mutually benefits the chapter with funding and gives our industry partners special opportunities to network, advertise, and promote their products. The levels of commitment are cumulative annually and sponsors will receive value for their participation.
Levels of Commitment
GOLD LEVEL $800 per year
SILVER LEVEL $600 per year
BRONZE LEVEL $400 per year
There are several opportunities for sponsorship:
Sponsor a power breakfast
Sponsor a lunch, dinner or break at annual meeting
Sponsor a speaker for a meeting
Donate gifts for door prizes
Provide speakers
Advertise on the chapter website
Advertise in the chapter newsletter
Sponsor the chapter web site
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