Posted by: AtlasMD

May 14, 2014

The ICD-10 Emperor Has No Clothes

They howled ICD-10 was delayed. And they howled loud and fierce.

Apparently, the life of U.S. healthcare hangs in the throes of 68,000 diagnosis codes.

Meanwhile, the rest of the world has switched to ICD-10. But here’s a secret. The World Health Organization’s version of ICD-10 has about 16,000 codes, equivalent to ICD-9-CM.

Let’s reiterate: The rest of the world is not using ICD-10-Clinical Modification set, which has 68,000 codes.

The Canadian version of ICD-10 has about 16,000 codes, but the physicians do not use those codes for billing and reimbursement. They use a more limited code set of about 600 three-digit codes.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 13, 2014

Spending Someone Else’s Money Is Inefficient. So Why Does Healthcare Insist On Doing It Like That?

Jeffrey Singer, M.D., or Dr. Singer, is a general surgeon in Arizona. He’s also an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute.

He claims that healthcare costs are too damn high—and they’re only getting worse. He’s got every reason to make that claim. Turns out that last week, researchers at Harvard and Dartmouth released a report estimating that healthcare costs will continue to grow faster than the economy for at least the next two decades.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 12, 2014

Think Like A Business! High-Deductible Plans Will Decrease Healthcare Spending.

High-deductible health plans appeared after legislation was passed in 2003 that required persons opening a health savings account to enroll in a high-deductible plan. They gained prominence recently as employers watched their own healthcare spending skyrocket.

And in 2013, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported that healthcare spending had grown at a record low pace from 2009 to 2011.

However, in this new HSA environment, practices need to think more like a business.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 9, 2014

The Free Market Feeds On Red Tape. Garden State Entrepreneurs Launch Startup To Help Docs Transition To “Cash-Only.”

The federal government may believe that the future of healthcare is the Affordable Care Act.

However, a New Jersey entrepreneur has a different vision — one where patients pay out of pocket for just about everything. And they pay a group of doctors and medical practices that are so fed up with the insurance-based system that they are opting to go it alone.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 8, 2014

Research Suggests That Preventing Illness Won’t Curb Rising Healthcare Costs. So How About We Just Cut The Red Tape?

Spending on health care has consistently grown faster than the rest of the U.S. economy. What’s behind this trend is less certain, though. Economists point to two causes: the prevalence of diseases and conditions afflicting the U.S. population, or the rising costs of treating diseases.

New research from American University Associate Professor Martha Starr and Virginia Tech Research Professor Ana Aizcorbe shows it is the latter, with higher prices for treatment accounting for 70 percent of growth in health care spending.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 7, 2014

Direct Care Is The Vaccine For “Deductible Season”

In the fee-for-service world, like the real world, there is an annual cycle. And, of course, there are seasons.

You know “flu season,” “poison ivy season,” and maybe even “Lyme disease season”.

But there is also a season that has little to do with medicine and everything to do with a broken payment system.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 6, 2014

Meet Atlas MD, Wichita’s Premiere Cash-Only Family Practice

Dr. Josh Umbehr cofounded Atlas MD in 2010 with Dr. Doug Nunamaker. Fresh out of residency, we’ve found tremendous success providing cash-only medicine — from zero subscribers to three docs and a full roster of patients.

Here, Dr. Josh speaks at the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons Conference.

If you’re new to Direct Care, this video will introduce you to an innovative insurance-free model of family medicine.

And if you want Direct Care in your area, make sure to register at “I Want Direct Care“. It only takes a name, email, and zip code to add a pin on our interactive map — and prove the demand for affordable healthcare.

Posted by: AtlasMD

May 5, 2014

The Immeasurable Value Of Direct Care — Time To Listen

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– Stephen Cocksedge, Listening as Work in Primary Care

That’s worth repeating: 85% of diagnoses can be made just by listening to the patient.

It’s clear cut: When doctors do not have enough time to listen the result is that they do not listen.

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Posted by: AtlasMD

May 2, 2014

5 Common Misconceptions About Healthcare Spending

Let’s talk about healthcare misconceptions. Here’s some corrections to common misconceptions about who pays for healthcare. Read more

Posted by: AtlasMD

May 2, 2014

Coverage Does Not Equate To Savings — Bronze Plan’s High Deductible Leaves Family Out To Dry

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Recently, we received a call from someone who wanted to learn more about our model.

Turns out, their ACA Bronze Plan no longer covers their medications, meaning they now will pay $600/mo until they reach their $6800 deductible.

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