ACE Alert, August 19, 2021, Volume 34
 

With the second round of COVID-19 cases raging, is it opportunity or fear that your medical group is facing now?  While it is no secret that the first round caught all of us off guard to make ends meet, stop and ask: Are you better off going into the second round?  What lessons have been learned and can be applied so this second round is not devastating to your practice?

1. Understanding how to document and bill for critical care services is key to keeping some revenue coming in.  While all of us will admit that it is not as lucrative as OR anesthesia, billing accurately for the services that are performed is essential.  Assist providers with templates that capture the key components needed for billing for ancillary lines, intubations, and critical care services.

2. Budget concerns and lines of credit should be in place if OR cases are shut down.  Texas, Florida, and several of the Universities are asking for voluntary elective surgeries to be postponed or rescheduled.  While the government was good to step in with alternative financing options for medical groups to keep revenue going, many groups are now having to repay those funds in the midst of facing another downturn in volumes/revenue.  How long can you survive?

3. Develop relationships with groups servicing ASCs and free-standing outpatient facilities to deploy staff that will help with their increased caseload volumes.  A 1099 position for staffing may be what your company needs to bridge the gap with shifts in caseloads.  

4. Stay the course.  Is the Delta variant just the first of many to come, is this to be our new normal?  Adapt operations to continue to work remotely and continue to reduce overhead.  Pay attention to HIPAA requirements for security IT issues and be sure to document the processes that has been put in place ensuring password controls, virus scanning, and backup controls.

While we at ACE are here to support our providers in any way that we can, we are not on the front lines.  We are thankful for those who are serving on the front lines and want all of you to stay safe.

Best,
Devona