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Practice Management Alert

Payer Updates:

Anthem BCBS Tests E-Visits in Maine

Published on Mon Jan 18, 2010

Plus, CMS alters 2010 conversion factor with emergency action. Physicians in Maine are testing the "e-visit" market. Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield and Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems (EMHS) have partnered with doctors at Eastern Maine Medical Center (EMMC) in Bangor and The Aroostook Medical Center (TAMC) in Presque Isle for a pilot program that will allow the doctors to communicate electronically with their patients. In the initial phase, Anthem will reimburse the hospitals for communicating about non-emergency situations, such as appointment scheduling, reviewing test results, and requesting refills. Other states, including Massachusetts and California, have conducted similar pilot programs. In other news: Despite CMS's plans to downgrade your 2010 conversion factor by 21.29 percent, the government stepped in at the last minute and offered you a quick boost -- at least temporarily. Congress voted to delay a decrease to the conversion factor until March 1. Therefore, you'll benefit from a [...]
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