MOREOR  LESS

Practicing  Medicine  in  2014:  What’s  Out  and  What’s  Here  to  Stay

It  seems  the  healthcare  industry  is  due  for  

another  round  of  dramatic  changes.  Here  is  

what  practices  can  expect  to  see  more  and  less  of  in  2014.

MORE:Patients.  In  General.

The  Affordable  Care  Act  (ACA)  is  projected  to  add  32  million  patients  to  the  healthcare  system  this  year.

Still,  48%  of  physicians  lack  the  resources  necessary  to  treat  new  patients.  In  response,  practices  may  have  to  hire  physician  assistants,  adopt  health  IT  software  or  outsource  billing  to  handle  the  patient  influx.

MORE:Certified  mHealth  Apps

With  the  number  of  mobile  health  apps  increasing  rapidly,  

the  FDA  has  decided  to  step  in  and  mandate  certification  

for  certain  types.

While  it  hopes  to  one  day  regulate  all  health  apps,  the  FDA  

is  starting  with  apps  used  for  monitoring  critical  care  symp-­

tons  and  regulating  drug  delivery.

MORE:Patient  Portal  Usage

Meaningful  Use  Stage  2’s  requirement  that  5%  of  unique  patients  must  access  their  health  information  online  means  patient  portals  will  become  more  important  than  ever.

Eligible  providers  must  spend  time  educating  patients.  But  first,  doctors  must  first  become  familiar  with  the  back  end  of  the  patient  portal,  so  they  discuss  it  properly.

LESS:MU  Stage  2  Vendors

As  a  result  of  Meaningful  Use  Stage  2’s  stringent  criteria,  many  EHR  vendors  are  having  difficulty  getting  certified  by  the  ONC.    

Expect  to  see  a  drop  in  EHRs  that  help  practices  qualify  for  the  next  phase  of  incentive  payments.  

LESS:Coding  Ambiguity

ICD-­10’s  155,000  CM  and  PCS  codes  will  provide  payers  

with  more  detailed  diagnosis  and  treatment  codes  for  

medical  services  rendered.  

Once  your  staff  gets  the  hang  of  the  new  coding  set,  this  

should,  in  theory,  result  in  higher,  more  accurate  reimburse-­

ments  for  your  practice.  

LESS:Medical  inflation

In  a  show  against  historical  trends,  medical  inflation  in  2014  

will  drop  even  lower  than  in  2013.  

Healthcare  consolidation,  new  models  for  delivering  care,  

and  components  of  the  Affordable  Care  Act  should  slow  

inflation  as  consumers,  employers  and  the  US  government  

look  for  ways  to  cut  medical  costs.

BOTTOM  

LINE:Medicine  is  evolving  rapidly.  Technology  is  taking  hold  of  the  reins  and  forcing  providers  to  adapt  or  recede.  

Will  you  get  left  behind?