Stories with related Professional Interests

Beyond Burnout: Docs Decry Moral Injury From Financial Pressures of Health Care - 02/14/2020

A growing number of physicians, nurses, social workers and other clinicians are using the phrase “moral injury” to describe their inner struggles at work. The term comes from war: It was first used to explain why military veterans were not responding to standard treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder.

Your Website + SEO = A Perfect Match - 02/14/2020

If you would like to learn how to build your online credibility and reach patients through effective SEO, tune into a free, 45-minute webinar by Officite, a Texas Medical Association endorsed vendor.

TMA Wants to Hear Your Thoughts on Practicing in Texas - 02/11/2020

Since 1990, the Texas Medical Association has asked Texas physicians for their thoughts on health care practice, the economic realities of practicing medicine in the state, and what issues they believe lawmakers should take on. Please answer this month’s survey and let us know how TMA can best advocate for you.

TMA Helping You Use Telemedicine More Effectively - 02/10/2020

Whether you use telemedicine every day in your practice or you’re just starting to consider how it might benefit your patients, you probably have plenty of questions and concerns about using it effectively and within compliance. That’s why the Texas Medical Association formed a task force that will help TMA serve physicians who want to integrate telemedicine into their practice.

Wage Rule Extends Overtime to More Employees - 02/07/2020

Some of your employees may have become newly eligible for overtime pay on Jan. 1. The U.S. Department of Labor has increased the minimum salary for exempt employees to $684 per week – $35,568 annually – from the previous level of $455 per week ($23,660 annually). Any employee earning less than $684 per week is automatically nonexempt and thus eligible for overtime pay.

UnitedHealthcare Out-of-Network Referrals: Prior Approval, Patient Consent - 02/05/2020

If you are a UnitedHealthcare (UHC) participating physician referring a patient out of network in a nonemergency, you’re now required to first obtain either (1) prior approval from UHC; or (2) the patient’s written consent.

Primary Care Consortium Seeking Breakout Proposals For Summit - 01/24/2020

The Texas Primary Care Consortium is looking to you to make its upcoming annual summit more in line with your experience with practice transformation. Here’s your chance to lead a breakout session.

Database Helps Find Answers to Your Health Care Questions - 01/15/2020

You’re probably already familiar with the Texas Medical Association Knowledge Center, an exclusive benefit that provides TMA members with answers and information on virtually all aspects of practicing medicine. But did you know the Knowledge Center offers members access to several searchable online databases, including Stat!Ref, a full-text health care library that contains more than 600 titles in 50-plus specialties?

Take Care of Your Financial Well-Being - 01/14/2020

  Paying back student loans, budgeting for personal/family needs, investing, and planning for retirement can be overwhelming at times. But maintaining your financial well-being doesn’t have to be a burden, particularly with help from the Texas Medical Association’s Committee on Physician Health and Wellness.  

Get the Know-How You Need When Upgrading Your EHR - 01/08/2020

The Texas Medical Association’s newest free webinar, EHR to EHR Conversions - When, Why, and How, on Oct. 25, will help you better assess available EHR systems to determine whether you should upgrade your system or switch vendors.

Request UnitedHealthcare Peer-to-Peer Review Online - 01/02/2020

Seeking a peer-to-peer conversation after a preauthorization request was declined? Now you can request one through an online form available on UnitedHealthcare’s Prior Authorization and Notification webpage.

Help Medicaid Patients Keep Appointments With Free Rides - 12/11/2019

If your Medicaid patient has trouble keeping his or her appointments with your office due to lack of transportation or gas money, be sure the patient knows how to seek help from Medicaid.

Don’t Let it Happen to You: Practice Fined Over Social Media - 12/09/2019

As more people go online to research products and services, online reputation management has become increasingly relevant for physicians.Because of the HIPAA Privacy Rule, physicians cannot respond to online reviews in any way that reveals PHI. Even if a patient discloses their own personal information in a review, physicians cannot respond with the same level of disclosure.

Do You Know Who Can Consent to the Treatment of a Minor? - 11/26/2019

The Texas Medical Association's recently updated white paper, Consent For Treatment of Minors, is there to help you understand what you can and cannot do when treating a person younger than 18.

How Practice Owners Can Control Health Insurance Costs During Open Enrollment - 11/22/2019

If you’re a practice owner whose health insurance is up for renewal during Health Insurance Open Enrollment, Nov. 1 to Dec. 15, there are ways to control the cost of your health insurance. The health insurance advisors at TMA Insurance Trust know of a lesser-known option that you can use to keep group plan cost within budget.

Modern Websites for Health Care Practices - 11/01/2019

Physicians spend many years in medical school, and marketing probably wasn’t a part of the curriculum. However, there’s a good chance your next potential patient will be looking for a physician with a search engine or on Facebook. So what’s a savvy practice to do?

Let TMA Help You Optimize Your Revenue Cycle - 10/03/2019

Is your practice struggling to collect payments? Are your accounts receivable growing rapidly? Is there a drain on your bottom line? The culprit could lie in your revenue cycle management.

Let TMA Help Keep Your Practice Compliant - 09/26/2019

In a medical practice, physicians, administrators, managers, and other staff may all be responsible for maintaining compliance with state and federal laws and regulations. The Texas Medical Association offers several resources, tools, and even discounts on compliance services to help keep your practice compliant.

TMB Transitions to Electronic Licenses in September - 09/18/2019

Beginning Sept. 1, the Texas Medical Board (TMB) will no longer issue paper licenses for physicians or physician assistants. Instead, new and renewed licenses will be available via the My TMB online portal.

Improve Patient Safety by Focusing on Safe Practices for Drug Allergies - 09/10/2019

Your electronic health record likely contains multiple types of clinical decision support (CDS) tools to help you track a patient’s drug allergies. But despite the many CDS tools, adverse drug allergy interactions continue to occur. To help practices curb those adverse reactions, the Partnership for Health IT Patient Safety created an online toolkit that focuses on using CDS and health information technology to safely prescribe medications.

Are You Eligible for “Expedited Credentialing?” - 08/28/2019

If you’re completing health plan credentialing, “expedited credentialing” might apply to you. And if it applies, that could be good for you and your practice. But how do you know if it does?

Court Rejects Hospital Challenge to Defamation Lawsuit - Again - 08/21/2019

Once again, Houston cardiothoracic surgeon Miguel Gomez, MD, has won in court in his battle to collect more than $6 million from Memorial Hermann Health System in a defamation lawsuit.

How User-Friendly Is Your EHR? - 08/16/2019

To help you prevent these types of errors in your practice, TMA has created a Technology and Patient Safety webpage that includes articles, interactive tools, manuals, and guidelines on how to make your electronic health record (EHR) technology safer. Use it to find information on contracting with EHR vendors, implementing or switching systems, and keeping your system secure.

Payers Axe Consultation Codes - 08/07/2019

Both Cigna and UnitedHealthcare (UHC) have announced that starting in October, they will no longer pay for CPT consultation codes 99241-99245 – office consultations – and 99251-99255 – inpatient consultations. UHC’s policy change becomes effective Oct. 1, as outlined in its March bulletin. Cigna’s July newsletter says Cigna’s policy takes effect Oct. 19.

All Together Now: Health Care Mergers Reshape the Way Texas Physicians Practice - 08/02/2019

Consolidation has touched just about every part of today’s health care industry. Hospitals, medical practices, pharmacies, insurance companies are all merging in various ways — a trend epitomized by the 2018 announcement that hospital systems Baylor Scott & White Health in Dallas and Memorial Hermann in Houston plan to become one big nonprofit.