Get Live Chat Request a Callback Get live demo

← Back

How Small and Independent Practices Can Keep Up with Governance, Risk & Compliance

EMR/EHR

Mobile | EHR on the iPad | AdvancedMD

There are a myriad of things that a physician in a small practice has to keep up with, but one of the most important (and perhaps most challenging) is risk and compliance. The federal government, state governments, and payers all have their own regulations, and failing to keep up can mean lost revenue or other negative consequences for your practice. As reimbursement rates continue to decrease, operational costs climb, and the volume of administrative tasks pile up for every physician, it can feel overwhelming.

Where to Focus

While this is not a comprehensive list of all the areas of governance, risk, and compliance concerns for practices, there are three areas where it is critical to keep your focus:

  • HIPAA
  • Coding
  • Quality Reporting

HIPAA
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) created rules around privacy and security for the electronic exchange of patient health information. In today’s digital age, where most patient information is stored electronically, part of your HIPAA requirements include protecting that information from data breaches. If your patient data is compromised, you will be subject to serious fines and a requirement to notify your patients about the breach, which can lead to mistrust. You probably can’t afford to hire an entire cybersecurity team, but you can work with vendors like AdvancedMD that provide the highest level of data protection and encryption for EHR and medical billing information stored in the cloud.

Coding
Medical coding is an area where many physicians and even office managers may not have much experience. It’s also an area that can get you in trouble, because incorrect coding—especially “upcoding” or billing for a higher level of services than you actually provided—is illegal. Rather than trying to figure out medical billing or risk going to jail if you get it wrong, talk to AdvancedMD about how our partnerships with companies like symplrCVO can help. We have medical billing services that will do all the work for you, or software that easily integrates into your EHR to pull the correct information and send it straight to billing along with the necessary documentation to send a claim.

Quality Reporting
MIPS and MACRA requires physicians to report on quality metrics related to patient care and outcomes and failing to do so in 2020 could mean as much as a 9% reduction in Medicare reimbursement rates in 2022. Figuring out what to report and mining all the data on your own would be cumbersome (and maybe impossible), but AdvancedMD has MIPS & MACRA reporting built right into our software platform. You continue to take care of your patients, and our software will pull the information necessary for reporting.

To find out more about how AdvancedMD can reduce your compliance risks, talk to us today to schedule a demo and see what we offer.



Topic: EMR/EHR


Other Resources Related to This Topic


EMR/EHR

EHR for the Private Practice : A Beginner’s Guide

This ebook from AdvancedMD shows how an effective EHR platform can drive efficiencies across your...

EMR/EHR

A case for EHR: 5 myths of remaining status quo

When considering EHR, practices often remain status quo because it seems easier and less expensive...

EMR/EHR

The State of Electronic Health Records in 2024

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) have revolutionized modern healthcare by transforming how patient information is stored,...

“The money I have invested in AdvancedMD is miniscule compared to the return. I have never been more efficient – ever – in my professional life as I am now.”

Jed Shay, MD
The Pain Care Center

Read the story  ›

“[Our] patients are very well-educated and well-informed, and they want to see results quickly. The practice has to run extremely efficiently and be accessible to them. The nice thing about [AdvancedMD] is it has allowed me to be more efficient both in and out of the office. Now I don’t have to come back into the office, which is great for my family and everything else. It saves me a lot of time – probably an hour a day on the three days I work in the second office.”

Keith Berkowitz, MD
Center for Balanced Health

Read the story  ›
Estaban Lavato, MD - La Loma Medical Center

“The best thing I ever did in private practice was getting AdvancedMD—it has liberated me.”

Estaban Lavato, MD
La Loma Medical Center

“Having integrated practice management and EHR is absolutely wonderful, you don’t have to flip back and forth between systems—all of your information is at hand when needed.”

Raju Raval, MD

Read the story  ›