Related Stories

TMB Expands Telemedicine, Opportunities for Retired Physicians Because of COVID-19 - 05/19/2020

In response to Gov. Greg Abbott’s COVID-19 “state of disaster” declaration Friday, the Texas Medical Board has taken several steps to help Texas physicians safely and effectively care for patients. On Thursday, the TMB issued a waiver that allows telephone refills of valid prescriptions for treatment of chronic pain by a physician with an established chronic pain patient.

Focus on Member Services: Future-Proofing Your Practice - 05/13/2020

As medical practices collect and store more information electronically, physicians will encounter more frequent technology breaches. The cost of a breach can be huge: an average of $402 per compromised record, plus fines. TMA makes robust security for your practice easy through education and services designed to manage the worst technology risks.

Focus on Member Services: A Thriving Practice - 05/13/2020

An essential function of an effective practice is being seen and found when (and where) people are looking for you. Since launching in 2004, Yelp has collected more than 6.4 million customer reviews in the health care sector. That's why TMA helps members cultivate successful practice relationships by providing tools to accelerate practice growth.

Can Your Patients and Colleagues Find You? - 05/13/2020

When prospective patients and referring colleagues visit the directory or TMA's HIPAA-secure DocbookMD mobile app — will they be able to find you?

Focus on Member Services: Avoiding Risk - 05/13/2020

Managing a medical practice comes with inherent risks, and physicians can face serious consequences for violating privacy, fraud, or abuse statutes. That's why physician members turn to TMA for help in establishing effective compliance programs, understanding the latest regulations, and navigating advancements in health IT.  

TMA White Paper Explains Minimum Safe-Practice Standards Rule - 05/13/2020

The Texas Medical Board’s new rule requiring practices follow minimum safe-practice standards has caused a lot of questions and headaches for physicians throughout the state. To help ease any pain, the Texas Medical Association has published a white paper on the rule, which went into effect May 1.

10 More Ways to Save Money in Your Practice - 05/12/2020

Past editions of TMA Practice E-Tips have suggested ways practices can save money and time in daily activities. Here are more tips … for TMA members only. These programs and services are free for TMA members, and can save practices thousands of dollars.

Top Benefits You Can Use Now - 05/12/2020

Top member benefits at TMA.

TMB to Extend Expiring Medical Licenses to Aug. 31 - 03/19/2020

The Texas Medical Board (TMB) will automatically extend until Aug. 31, 2020, all state medical licenses that have expired or will expire between Feb. 28, 2020, and May 31, 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said. Any late fees will be waived, TMB said.

TMA to TMB: Let Docs Decide Whether In-Person Visit Needed For Subsequent Opioid Scrips - 03/06/2020

The Texas Medical Association has some suggestions for the Texas Medical Board on how to implement the state’s new 10-day limit on opioid prescriptions for acute pain. A letter to the board says it should be up to the physician’s judgment whether a non-initial 10-day prescription for acute pain requires seeing a patient in-person.

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.

You May Need to Refile Some Medicare Claims - 02/03/2020

Be on the lookout for Medicare claims you’ve filed since Oct. 1 in which procedure codes failed to process, causing a rejected claim. You will need to refile these claims.

Insurance Companies Have Denied My Doctor’s Orders, 25% of Texas Voters Say in New Poll - 01/29/2020

One in four Texas voters say their health insurance company has refused to cover what their physician ordered for them or their families, a new statewide survey has found.

Your Telemedicine, TMA Questions Answered - 01/22/2020

If you're interested in telemedicine, or you want to know all the ways the Texas Medical Association can help you, tune into to a 30-minute virtual meeting scheduled for noon to 12:30 pm Thursday, Feb. 20.

Develop a No-Show Policy — and Use It - 12/12/2019

Develop a no-show policy — and use it

TMB Pulls Proposed Rule on Surprise Bills - 12/09/2019

The Texas Medical Board has withdrawn its proposed rules to implement pieces of the state’s new law introducing baseball-style arbitration on many out-of-network medical bills. At its meeting Friday, the board pulled down its rule proposal, saying in a statement that it “would not cover all providers under the statute.”

Is Medicare’s Chronic Care Management Program for You? - 11/22/2019

Interested in the possibility of getting paid as much as $75,000, or even more, for something you already more or less do? Medicare now pays separately for chronic care management services. To help you decide if this new opportunity is right for your practice, TMA created a new online resource center.

Chronic Care Management: The Patient Agreement - 11/22/2019

Securing a patient’s informed and written consent is an important part of the Medicare Chronic Care Management Services program. Medicare requires it, and you’ll be sure your patients understand how it works.

Miss the TMA Virtual Meeting? Watch It Now - 11/20/2019

Were you unable to tune in to the Texas Medical Association’s virtual meeting last week? If you missed it, you can check out the meeting anytime on TMA’s virtual meeting webpage.

Examine the Billing Cycle “Vitals” for Your Practice - 11/13/2019

The Texas Medical Association’s free webinar, What You Need to Know to Evaluate Your Billing Process, offers a step-by-step process and tools to assess your practice’s financial health and identify key areas for improvement. The webinar will show you how to use practice management reports to evaluate your staff’s productivity, your billing and collections processes, and even payer performance.

Practice e-Tips on Claims - 10/30/2019

Appeals Appealing Claims Can Have Appealing Results   Claim Forms Multiple Place-of-Service Codes on a Single 1500 Claim Form   Fees New Laws Require Billing Di

Starting a Practice - 10/30/2019

Setting Up or Closing a Practice

Medicare Lab Fee Includes Routine Venipuncture - 10/16/2019

If you perform the lab test in your office, you may not bill separately for the “collection of venous blood by venipuncture,” or CPT code 36415, according to the Medicare Claims Processing Manual. However, a significant number of physicians who collect blood and perform lab tests in their office are billing for CPT code 36415 along with the test code, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services says.

Academic Physicians - 10/04/2019

Academic Physicians

Here’s What Medicare Pays for Flu Shots This Season - 10/04/2019

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently published 2019-20 payment rates for personal flu vaccines and their administration. The effective dates for these rates are Aug. 1, 2019, to July 31, 2020.