Practice Management

Pain physicians are not only highly trained in the many treatment approaches of pain medicine, but are often required to run successful pain businesses. This section offers practical tools and resources for you to use in your pain practice. Coding, policies, patient education and other helpful information will support your daily practice decisions and business needs. This area is also a favorite of office managers and other support staff.

Latest News and Updates

Changes for Neurostimulator Coding
December 5, 2018 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
CPT 2019 made significant changes to the codes and guidelines for neurostimulator services.
Full story.

Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule
November 20, 2018 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
On November 1, 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the 2019 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and Quality Payment Program (QPP) final rule, which will be published in the Federal Register on November 23.
Full story.

Use Caution with Implanted Pumps for Intrathecal Administration of Medicines for Pain Management: FDA Safety Communication
November 14, 2018 [Source: FDA]
Full story.

Update Regarding Risk of Tissue Overheating Due to Inaccurate Magnetic Resonance Thermometry
November 8, 2018 [Source: FDA]
Full story.

Your Help Needed for RUC Surveys
November 6, 2018 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
AAPM is participating in important AMA/Specialty Society Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) surveys of physician work. A new CPT code has been created to describe an injection of the sacroiliac nerves and another for radiofrequency ablation of the sacroiliac nerves.
Full story.

Opioids for Surgical Procedures Clinical Practice Guidelines (2018)
November 2, 2018 [Source: Medscape]
The guidelines on prescribing opioids following surgical procedures were released by the Opioids After Surgery Workgroup. The panel established 5 important qualifying factors to consider during the process of prescribing opioid medications.
Full story.

AMA Applauds HHS for Revisions to Medicare E/M Policies
November 1, 2018 [Source: AMA]
View statement.

Medicare’s Searchable Physician Fee Schedule
October 24 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
CMS will release in early November the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and other policy changes effective for 2019. As the new fee schedule is released, practices will want to assess the impact of the changes to the practice and calculate co-payment amounts for Medicare beneficiaries.
Full story.

ICD-10-CM Changes Released
October 10 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
The ICD-10-CM update for 2019 became effective October 1, 2018. The 2019 edition contains 279 additions, 51 deletions and 143 revisions for a total of 71,932 ICD-10-CM codes.
Full story.

CMS Re-Calculates 2017 MIPS Final Scores
September 26, 2018 [Source: Emily Hill, PA, AAPM Coding Consultant]
Under the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) must provide practices with performance feedback based on the data reported for the prior year.
Full story.