NEW PAYOR SOURCES FOR PHYSICAL, OCCUPATIONAL & OTHER THERAPIES DISCUSSED

NEW PAYOR SOURCES FOR PHYSICAL, OCCUPATIONAL & OTHER THERAPIES DISCUSSED

STATE MEDICAID WAIVER PLANS DISCUSSED AS A SOURCE OF ADDITIONAL REVENUES FOR PHYSICAL, OCCUPATIONAL AND OTHER TYPES OF THERAPY PRACTICES.

(PRWEB) July 24, 2003

In large metropolitan areas, competition in the comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation (CORF) market has been increased such that providers of outpatient medical services are looking for alternative payor sources to increase revenues. State medwaiver programs can be an ideal resource for these facilities though many CORFÂ’s are not credentialed to provide medwaiver services. 

Medwaiver in Florida has three program components. The developmentally disability programÂ’s purpose is to promote and maintain the health of developmentally disabled individuals through the provision of necessary medical and support services. The two other Florida medwaiver programs that can also be accessed were developed to specifically address the needs of AIDS patients (PAC-waiver) and the disabled elderly (aged and disabled waiver). Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, massage therapy, behavioral services and more can be provided under the waiver. There is currently a surplus of developmentally disabled patients waiting for service. Certified medwaiver providers are contacted by support coordinators who are in charge of assisting disabled clients in regard to meeting their ancillary outpatient medical needs. In many states there is currently a surplus of developmentally disabled patients waiting for service.

Becoming a medwaiver provider demands that an organization successfully completes a rather demanding Credentialing & Certification process with ongoing quality monitoring. For many CORF service providers the process is either too unfamiliar and/or time consuming. South Florida Medical Management, Inc. (SFMM) is a consulting firm that specializes in CORF development. SFMM is now offering providerÂ’s assistance in obtaining medwaiver certification. Application documentation is provided and SFMM will show you through a simplified step-by-step process how to gain your certification. SFMM will also train you in the treatment protocols that are the current standard of practice including: Policies/Procedures, Disaster Planning/Safety, Patient Care, Service docs., Compliance monitoring, etc. Everything you need to establish certification, deliver and document delivery of services, as well as billing procedures is provided by SFMM.

For more information regarding cost, location, and date of these seminars, or other consulting services, please contact Allen Drozd at South Florida Medical Management, Inc. 15290 NW 60th Avenue.. Miami Lakes, FL.. 33014 (admin@sfmm. net or call (305) 820-1361). More information about SFMM services can be found at http:///www. corfnet. net (http:///www. corfnet. net).

Utah Senate Bill 34 "Patient Access Reform" (Any Willing Provider)

Utah Senate Bill 34 "Patient Access Reform" (Any Willing Provider)

What is it - Senate Bill 34, "Patient Access Reform" (Any Willing Provider) is sponsored by State Senator Parley Hellewell. If enacted, it would enable HMO or PPO insureds to receive services from any provider hospital, physician, or other provider, whether participating on an insurance company's panel or not, and the provider could accept a 95% reimbursement or balance bill the patient.

(PRWEB) February 27, 2005

Who is for it - This would obviously provide more patient choice and help non-paneled providers. This bill has much support from physicians. It will enable them to seek reimbursement from insurance carriers irregardless if they are part of the carrier network or not. Patients have greater access to physicians. Physicians are mainly behind this bill as I observe whom attends various meetings.

Who is Against it - This is obviously fought by the major health insurance carriers in Utah because they loose control of contractual discounts from "In-network providers". All of you have heard of "In-network" vs. "Out-of-network" providers. When you stay in network you pay a small office visit copay in the amount of $15. This bill would essentially smash pre-negotiated contractual pay rates designed and promoted by health insurance carriers. The carriers would not be able to discount or pay reduced fees that they are accustomed to. IHC Health Plans quotes "IHC Health Plans estimates the financial impact of this legislation will be over $75 million per year. These costs will be passed on in premium increases".

My Opinion - I think there are some merits with the bill but it doesn't surprise me that ongoing conflicts occur between Physicians wanting to get paid more vs. health insurance carriers wanting to pay less. I feel patients should have access to certain "specialist" physicians for disease treatment with out carrier intervention. But at what cost? After all it is the insurance carrier that has to determine actuarial premium rates to cover risk within a populace. They control costs and actually protect clients from over billing. That is probably my biggest concern is how many physicians would drop from a insurance carrier network because they could earn more and balance bill the patient. Good for them but I am not convinced "all" physicians would bill ethically. My other thought is that the (Many) insurance carrier's can skim down multiple multi million dollar salaries internally and externally which would ease pressure on actuarial rates should this bill pass. As always the "patient" is caught in the middle.

History - Was approved by the Senate "Business and Labor Committee" and will soon be voted on by the entire Senate   Thursday, January 27th - 8:00 a. m.

Room W135

West Office Building

State Capitol Complex

Business and Labor Committee members include: 

Senator Scott K. Jenkins, Chair

Senator Gene Davis

Senator Thomas V. Hatch

Senator Parley G. Hellewell

Senator John W. Hickman

Senator Sheldon L. Killpack

Senator L. Alma Mansell

Senator Ed Mayne

Senator Michael G. Waddoups

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First Horizon MSaver President E. Craig Keohan Honored for Consumer Driven Healthcare Leadership

First Horizon MSaver President E. Craig Keohan Honored for Consumer Driven Healthcare Leadership

E. Craig Keohan, president of First Horizon Msaver, Inc. announced that he was honored to receive the CEO CDHC Leadership Award as part of the CDHC Awards.

Las Vegas, NV (PRWEB) March 5, 2007

E. Craig Keohan, president of First Horizon Msaver, Inc. (http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com (http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com)) announced that he was honored to receive the CEO CDHC Leadership Award as part of the CDHC Awards. Created and produced by Prepaid Media, the annual CDHC Awards recognize noteworthy professionals, organizations, and programs throughout the consumer-driven health care industry. Awards were presented last night during an awards dinner held during the 2007 CDHC Expo in Las Vegas

"I am truly honored to be recognized with the CEO CDHC Leadership Award as part of the first annual CDHC Awards," said E. Craig Keohan, president of First Horizon Msaver. "There is no question that our industry continues to evolve and having a role in shaping the CDHC landscape is truly exciting."

"We want to congratulate all the companies that submitted their products, services, and professionals for consideration for the first annual CDHC Awards," said Jonathan Weiner, president of Prepaid Media. "There are many companies and individuals developing and offering innovative programs and products in the rapidly evolving consumer directed healthcare market. These winners represent some of the most innovative programs and products that have had significant impact in their respective categories in the past twelve months."

About E. Craig Keohan

E. Craig Keohan, is President of First Horizon Msaver, Inc.(http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com (http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com)), and is considered a pioneer in the consumer driven healthcare community. He saw the future of consumer driven health care in 1997, guiding Msaver to one of the leading administrators of consumer driven financial products. He has more than 23 years of professional leadership experience, with a focus in healthcare and banking. Keohan has been invited to the White house to attend a Health Savings Account strategy sessions lead by President Bush and often consults with leaders in Congress and the Administration regarding consumer driven health care issues. Keohan continues to guide First Horizon Msaver to become the nation's leading HSA financial administer. Keohan is also the Chairman of the American Bankers Association HSA Council. The council provides the banking industry an outreach forum with HSA product development and avocation of legislative enhancements.

About First Horizon Msaver

First Horizon Msaver Inc. is a leader in the servicing of Health Savings Accounts and is a member of the First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE: FHN) family of companies that provides financial services to business customers and individuals nationwide. With first-to-market technology like electronic enrollment, banking online, online bill pay, investment options and a dedicated HSA customer care center, First Horizon Msaver is helping thousands of Americans get the most out of their tax-favored HSAs.

First Horizon companies have been recognized as some of the nation's best employers by AARP, Working Mother and Fortune magazines. First Horizon also was named one of the nation's 100 best corporate citizens by Business Ethics magazine. More information can be found at (http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com (http://www. firsthorizonmsaver. com)).

About Prepaid Media

Prepaid Media provides a host of business-to-business media and information services to the rapidly growing network branded prepaid and stored value card industry.

Prepaid Media's properties include the Paybefore online portal, Paybefore Update electronic newsletter, and Prepaid Card Report (PCR) print publication, the leading information sources for the prepaid and stored value card markets. Prepaid Media also owns and produces the Prepaid Buyers Guide, Prepaid Card Data, and Prepaid Card Awards, all of which are incorporated across its various media properties.

As the prepaid and stored value card industry continues to evolve, Prepaid Media serves as a trusted partner, providing compelling learning, buying and selling, and networking opportunities to key market participants. For more information on Prepaid Media, please visit: www. prepaidmedia. com.

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Nation’s Largest Health Plan Survey Cites Significant Health Plan Cost Disparity Between States

Nation’s Largest Health Plan Survey Cites Significant Health Plan Cost Disparity Between States

Creating Parity through a National Plan May be Difficult

Indianapolis, Indiana (Vocus) October 26, 2010

Key findings released today by United Benefit Advisors (UBA) from the UBA 2010 Health Plan Survey indicate that significant differences in state-by-state average annual costs (AAC) for employee health plans may have implications regarding the future implementation of health insurance exchanges and/or co-operatives.

The survey reveals that while Alaska has the highest average annual cost (AAC) per employee at $10,881, the only other states with an AAC per employee in excess of $10,000 are all located in the Northeast:

Connecticut  $10,584
New York  $10,414
New Jersey  $10,295
Massachusetts  $10,229

This is in contrast to the least expensive states that include:

Kentucky  $6,342
Arkansas  $6,422
Idaho  $6,529
Arizona  $6,771

The disparity between the highest and lowest illustrates the difficult nature of creating parity through a national plan and may indicate that there is a greater need for state based programs as health care reform refinements occur in the future. “The question is who will manage regional co-operatives and exchanges when there are four or five potential insurance commissioners involved,” said Bill Stafford, UBA Vice President, Member Services.

The intent of the UBA Health Plan Survey is to provide employers of all sizes with the data they need to manage their health care benefit programs effectively. Especially employers with fewer than 1,000 employees (which represents more than 99 percent of the employers in the U. S.) and for employers who have operations in multiple locations, this survey is the best source of reliable regional – and in many cases, state – health plan benchmarks by employer size and industry categories. The full survey will be available to the public on Nov. 1. Only UBA Member Firms have access to the more than 250,000 pages of granular state, region and industry data.

ABOUT THE 2010 UBA HEALTH PLAN SURVEY
With responses from 17,113 health plans sponsored by 11,413 employers nationwide, the 2010 UBA Health Plan Survey is the nation’s largest and most comprehensive survey of plan design and plan costs. As the largest survey of its kind, the UBA Health Plan Survey defines benchmarks by a greater number of specific industries, regions and employer size categories than is available from any other resource. The 2009 UBA Employer Benefit Perspectives (which delineates employers' positions and opinions on Employee Communications, Personal Health Management and Scope of Benefits Offered) and the 2010 UBA Employer Opinion Survey (including the Special Supplement on Health Care Reform) serve as companion pieces to the 2010 UBA Health Plan Survey.

ABOUT UNITED BENEFIT ADVISORS – United Benefit Advisors, is a member-owned alliance of more than 140 premier independent benefit advisory firms with offices in more than 165 offices throughout the U. S, Canada and the U. K., and is one of the nation's top five employee benefits advisory organizations. As trusted and knowledgeable advisors, UBA Members collaborate with more than 2,000 professionals to provide best in class solutions that positively impact employers and make a real difference in the lives of their employees and families. Employers, advisors and industry-related organizations interested in obtaining powerful results from our shared wisdom should visit UBA online at http://www. UBAbenefits. com to locate your local UBA Member Firm.

CONTACT: William Stafford, Vice President, Member Services, Phone: 317-705-1800, bstafford(at)UBAbenefits(dot)com

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Blood Bank goes online for donation scheduling

Blood Bank goes online for donation scheduling

(PRWEB) October 5, 2000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 3, 2000

Contacts:  Paul Lacjak, VP of Marketing ScheduleWise. com

 303.730.8120

 placjak@schedulewise. com

 Eric Watson, Recruitment Mgr

 Bonfils Blood Center

 1-800-365-0006

 eric_watson@qm. bbmbc. com

BONFILS BLOOD CENTER TO OFFER SCHEDULING ONLINE

HIGH-TECH SOLUTION WILL INCREASE BLOOD DONATIONS

DENVER, Oct. 3, 2000 -- Bonfils Blood Center is taking a high-tech step toward making it easier to donate blood by teaming up with local software company ScheduleWise. com to become the one of the nationÂ’s nationÂ’s first blood banks to offer online scheduling.

The realtime, interactive online scheduling program, developed by ScheduleWise. com, based in Littleton, CO, enables donors to log on to the Bonfils website at www. bonfils. org and search for a mobile blood drive by location and/or date. Volunteer coordinators can now send company-wide emails to solicit donations at corporate drives.

“We are very excited to be partnering with Bonfils Blood Center as one of our first major ventures,” said Paul Lacjak, VP of ScheduleWise. com. “Bonfils runs about 1500 mobile blood drives per year, and we can really make a difference.”

“We are very excited to work with ScheduleWise. com to form a new collaborative partnership to make blood donation easier and more convenient for our donor public,” said Eric Watson, Recruitment Manager at Bonfils. “This direction keeps Bonfils in line with today's technology trends and shows our commitment to reaching the corporate community.”

About ScheduleWise

ScheduleWise. com is a privately held company headquartered in Littleton, CO. ScheduleWise. com develops online interactive scheduling solutions for appointment-driven service businesses. Initially targeting the healthcare community, ScheduleWise products allow patients and customers to schedule appointments twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, from home, work, or road. Its realtime, interactive features set ScheduleWise apart from other scheduling software products that ask both parties to connect to a web page in order to see the calendar changes. Healthcare and service providers control timeslot parameters, and there is no chance of double-booking. The process is secure and confidential. For more information: www. schedulewise. com.

About Bonfils

Bonfils Blood Center is Colorado's only community blood center, providing blood and transfusion medicine services to more than 90 hospitals and healthcare facilities throughout the state. Bonfils Blood Center has embraced the professional responsibility to be the steward of Colorado's blood supply for over fifty-five years. RVA Council for Accreditation, one of the world's largest and most demanding verification organizations, has awarded ISO 9002 registration to Bonfils Blood Center for its commitment to total quality management in blood banking. For more information: www. bonfils. org.

PlayPhone Dials It In with the Fuze Suite

PlayPhone Dials It In with the Fuze Suite

Branded mobile entertainment company, PlayPhone, Inc. is utilizing the customer care software of Fuze Digital Solutions to drive self-service answers and reduce the need for assisted service on its own web site as well as those of its partners. Utilizing Fuze Web Services, PlayPhone is able to cost effectively present a custom look and feel for its seamlessly integrated knowledge base on multiple sites.

Seattle, Wash. (Vocus) May 6, 2009 –

Branded mobile entertainment company, PlayPhone, Inc. is utilizing the customer care software (http://www. fuzeqna. com/fuzeds/consumer/kbdetail. asp? kbid=887) of Fuze Digital Solutions to drive self-service answers and reduce the need for assisted service on its own web site as well as those of its partners. Utilizing Fuze Web Services, PlayPhone is able to cost effectively present a different look and feel for its seamlessly integrated knowledge base on multiple sites.

PlayPhone is a global mobile media company present in more than 25 countries throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America that provides personalization and entertainment content to mobile consumers.

In addition to operating its consumer-facing mobile destination at PlayPhone. com, PlayPhone powers mobile content destinations and promotional offerings for entertainment and retail brands including Wal-Mart, BET Networks, ABC Television, National Geographic, Sony Pictures, SonyBMG, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Sega, Real Networks and iPlay.

Through using pieces of code (widgets, gadgets, etc.) to call Fuze Web Services, PlayPhone is able to customize the look and feel of its knowledge base (http://www. fuzeqna. com/fuzeds/consumer/kbdetail. asp? kbid=887) for a seamless web site integration of the Fuze Suite. They can also easily control the knowledge base content that is extended on each site, yet easily administer it in a central repository.

“Extending Fuze Suite functionality to a computer screen, in-line game, or hand-held device using our Web Services is easy and can be done by us or any competent web developer,” remarked Chuck Van Court, CEO and Founder of Fuze Digital Solutions. “The Fuze Suite is all about promoting our clients’ brand, not our own, and we make it easy to get the knowledge base (http://www. fuzeqna. com/fuzeds/consumer/kbdetail. asp? kbid=887) content where it's needed.”

“PlayPhone has been a Fuze client for more than a year now, and we love the product and support we get from them,” said Grace Meza, PlayPhone’s Technical Support Manager. “With a single instance of the Fuze Suite, we’re able to cost-effectively segment the content for our multiple mobile destination sites and give each a custom look and feel.“

About PlayPhone, Inc.
San Jose-based PlayPhone (www. playphone. com) is a leading global mobile media company present in over 25 countries throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America that provides cutting edge personalization and entertainment content to mobile consumers anytime, anywhere. PlayPhone founded the direct-to-consumer mobile media distribution standard in 2003 and continues to establish new means for delivering wireless entertainment. PlayPhone is funded by top venture firms Menlo Ventures, Cardinal Venture Capital, Scale Venture Partners and Coral Capital Management.

About Fuze Digital Solutions, LLC
Seattle-based Fuze Digital Solutions is an employee-owned company that provides an enterprise-grade and modular customer care software suite that is easy to use and administer and includes a knowledge base that is first to leverage community insights while protecting brand integrity. The Fuze SuiteTM enables companies to build and sustain customer loyalty by facilitating education, communication, and collaboration with customers during the support process. The Fuze Suite includes a robust set of modules to help companies provide outstanding and consistent care across all support channels including website, chat, email and phone. Fuze customers include Fujitsu, Sutherland Group, CareerBuilder. com, SonicWall, Oregon Health & Sciences University, NOAA, Capcom, AAA clubs and over 50 financial institutions including Lockheed Federal Credit Union. For more information, call (425) 649-1246 or visit online at www. fuzeds. com.

Media Contact:
Jean Van Court
Fuze Digital Solutions
425-649-1246

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TyMetrix Announces Appointment of Chief Technology Officer

TyMetrix Announces Appointment of Chief Technology Officer

David Gardner will focus on continued development Of TyMetrix Web-based systems.

HARTFORD, CT (PRWEB) August 12, 2005

TyMetrix (www. tymetrix. com), a CT Corporation company and Wolters Kluwer business, and the market leader in web-based e-billing and matter management solutions for corporate law departments, claims organizations, law firms, and other legal support vendors today announced the further expansion of its management team with the appointment of a Chief Technology Officer, David Gardner. Gardner has nearly 20 years of experience as a technology manager and executive and has played leadership roles in product management, development, engineering, and quality assurance for numerous software products. His appointment is designed to increase the company's focus on the delivery and continued development of leading of TyMetrix web-based systems as TyMetrix increases its market share and expands globally.

David is now responsible for product development, security, quality assurance, and all technology platforms and infrastructure that support TyMetrix engagements. Prior to joining TyMetrix, he spent 12 years with Pitney Bowes, most recently serving as Managing Director of the Electronic Document Management Practice for Pitney Bowes Document Messaging Technologies (DMT) division.

"Several corporations and claims organizations are either taking a first look at technology solutions or are reconsidering new systems in light of technology advancements, including the advent of. net technologies and advancements in web system security. TyMetrix is proud to embrace these opportunities," said John Weber, TyMetrix General Manager. "David Gardner provides the company with an uncommon blend of software expertise, technology vision, and executive leadership experience. I know he will be invaluable in our effort to exceed the expectations of our customers around the world."

TyMetrix delivers its matter management and electronic invoicing system under the Application Service Provider (ASP) model, allowing clients to take advantage of lower capital costs and eliminate system development, maintenance and data storage. “Given our client base, which includes organizations with geographically dispersed staff and global offices and law firms, the ASP model is ideal,” said Kurt Swanke, Senior Product Manager. “David’s expertise in system hosting and security makes him ideally suited to continue TyMetrix’ commitment to securely hosting our application, a commitment which is especially imperative when sensitive data is transferred for clients in highly-regulated industries, such as banking, insurance, and chemical.”

About TyMetrix

TyMetrix, a part of Wolters Kluwer Corporate & Financial Services, is the market leading brand of Web-based management solutions for corporate law departments and claims organizations. TyMetrix operations are headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut, with staff across the country. TyMetrix solutions provide claims and corporate legal departments with web-based systems for electronic invoicing, performance management metrics, matter management, budgeting and forecasting, document management, and collaborative knowledge management. TyMetrix is a CT Corporation company.

About CT Corporation

CT Corporation, a Wolters Kluwer business, pioneered the corporate legal services industry more than 100 years ago. Today, CT Corporation is leading the industry in developing a powerful suite of integrated workflow tools and services to help corporate legal departments and law firms realize meaningful efficiencies and increased effectiveness. These solutions are corporate governance, including corporate records management and SEC compliance; corporate compliance, such as business entity and UCC compliance filings; statutory representation; and litigation management, including matter management, e-billing and e-discovery. CT Corporation is based in New York City. For more information on CT Corporation, please visit www. CTAdvantage. com.

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer is a leading multinational publisher and information services company. The company's core markets are spread across the health, corporate services, finance, tax, accounting, law, regulatory and education sectors. Wolters Kluwer has annual revenues (2004) of €3.3 billion, employs approximately 18,400 people worldwide and maintains operations across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Its depositary receipts of shares are quoted on the Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.

Contact:

TyMetrix contact: 

Kurt Swanke

860.549.8795

Kswanke@tymetrix. com

Wolters Kluwer contact:

Peggy Wilson

320.240.5260

Peggy. wilson@wkglobal. com

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