Is  your revenue cycle producing the results you need? Medical Business Resources can help you find where your revenue cycle is breaking down by giving you Medical Revenue Cycle Analysis.  MRB can provide you with the expertise needed to improve the performance of your cash recovery.  Medical Business Resources proves their worth time and time again.   They have recovered millions of dollars for their clients. You get performance -everytime from MBR!  Give their Health Capital Consultants at 303-409-7722 and to learn more about all their services visit www.mbrus.com .

Medical Business Resources uncompromising dedication at improving their clients entire Revenue Cycle, and improving their dependable cash flow is unsurpassed.  In the last 15 years, they have helped their clients collect millions of dollars in revenue that would otherwise have been lost. You too can add to your bottom line with MBR’s  consulting services from their Health Capital Constultants.  Call them at 303-409-7722 and learn more at www.mbrus.com .

Medical auditing tools from Medical Business Resources accelerates revenues and profit margins for healthcare providers.  MBR started up in 1996 and since then they have recovered into the hundreds of millions of dollars for its provider clients.  Data management and data integration is also a vital part of the  process and MBR has a great software program called AnswerData that provides data integration and management, analytical forecasting and cash recovery strategies to help assure financial success.  Medical Business Resources can improve your dependable cash flow and your fiscal health.  Call them at 303-409-7722 and to learn more visit www.mbrus.com .

Washington – House lawmakers in December 2011 approved legislation that would prohibit the sale of synthetic marijuana and other drugs known as “bath salts” and “plant food,” which have been compared to dangerous hallucinogenic drugs when used illicitly. The measure, however, faces an indefinite delay in the Senate due to a lawmaker’s hold on the bill.

Representatives on Dec. 8 voted 317-98 to ban the synthetic drugs, which can mimic the effects of marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamines. Sen. Charles Grassley (R, Iowa) has introduced similar legislation in the Senate, but the bill is being held up by an objection from Sen. Rand Paul, MD (R, Ky.), according to Grassley’s office. Dr. Paul’s office did not respond to repeated inquiries seeking comment on the legislative hold, which senators sometimes place on bills over matters unrelated to the legislation in question.

Organizations representing physicians and public health officials support the House-passed legislation because they say there is no known medicinal use for the substances. The number of patients seeking treatment in hospital emergency departments after using the synthetic drugs also has skyrocketed during the last year.

The American Assn. of Poison Control Centers reported 5,853 calls to poison centers that were related to bath salt exposure from January to November 2011, a dramatic increase from 303 such calls in 2010. Centers reported that they received 6,348 calls related to synthetic marijuana in 2011.

Revenue cycle has potential for revenue loss at every stage. Medical Business Resources has the tools and strategies for healthcare facilities to improve dramatically and even eliminate revenue loss.  Since 1996 they have been implementing and servicing nearly every hospital in the greater Denver area and many healthcare providers throughout Colorado, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri and Nebraska. Call their Health Capital Consultants at 303-409-7722 and to learn more about them and their medical auditing tools visit them at www.mbrus.com .

New York Times: Americans have been getting fatter for years, and with the increase in waistlines has come a surplus of conventional wisdom. If we could just return to traditional diets, if we just walk for 20 minutes a day, exercise gurus and government officials maintain, America’s excess pounds would slowly but surely melt away.

Scientists are less sanguine. Many of the so-called facts about obesity, they say, amount to speculation or oversimplification of the medical evidence. Diet and exercise do matter, they now know, but these environmental influences alone do not determine an individual’s weight. Body composition also is dictated by DNA and monitored by the brain. Bypassing these physical systems is not just a matter of willpower.

More than 66 percent of Americans are overweight or obese, according to the federalCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, in Atlanta. Although the number of obese women in the United States appears to be holding steady at 33 percent, for most Americans the risk is growing. The nation’s poor diet has long been the scapegoat. There have been proposals to put warning labels on sodas like those on cigarettes. There are calls to ban junk foods from schools. New York and other cities now require restaurants to disclose calorie information on their menus.

But the notion that Americans ever ate well is suspect. In 1966, when Americans were still comparatively thin, more than two billion hamburgers already had been sold in McDonald’s restaurants, noted Dr. Barry Glassner, a sociology professor at the University of Southern California. The recent rise in obesity may have more to do with our increasingly sedentary lifestyles than with the quality of our diets.

“The meals we romanticize in the past somehow leave out the reality of what people were eating,” he said. “The average meal had whole milk and ended with pie…. The typical meal had plenty of fat and calories.”

“Nostalgia is going to get us nowhere,” he added.

Neither will wishful misconceptions about the efficacy of exercise. First, the federal government told Americans to exercise for half an hour a day. Then, dietary guidelines issued in 2005 changed the advice, recommending 60 to 90 minutes of moderate exercise a day. There was an uproar; many said the goal was unrealistic for Americans. But for many scientists, the more pertinent question was whether such an exercise program would really help people lose weight.

The process of examining the accounts receivable flow from a detailed perspective is Revenue Cycle Analysis. This process  includes investigating every financial aspect of the patient encounter, from the initial scheduling of the appointment through the progression of charge, payment, and adjustment posting, and every step in between.  Medical Business Resources uses software and tools to advance your dependable cash flow and improve your fiscal health.  With tools such as AnswerData, ARMS Tracker, Sigstat, 3D ATB and QDAR, MBR can generate much needed cash flow for it’s clients.  They can for you too!  Call them at 303-409-7722 and visit them online at www.mbrus.com for more information.

Disparities in insurance reimbursement and patients’ ability to pay contribute to trying to accurately estimate revenue numbers. Calculating what reserves will be needed to successfully operate and make sound financial decisions. Healthcare financial services from Medical Business Resources is a great asset.  They facilitate the claims adjudication process with a focus on accurate, timely, and complete payment for services and supplies rendered in the delivery of healthcare. They maintain consistent, dependable cash flow for their clients through professional relationships and diligent correspondence with third party payers. MBR is an extension of the business office and staff of each provider they serve.  Call MBR at 303-409-7722 and to learn more about all their services visit them at www.mbrus.com .

Amednews: Fewer mass layoffs occurred at hospitals in the final months of 2011, and a staffing company survey suggests hiring may increase in the health care industry this year.

Mass layoffs are defined as at least 50 people losing their jobs from a single company.

There were seven such incidents at hospitals in November 2011 that affected at least 464 employees, according to the monthly report on mass layoffs issued Dec. 22, 2011, by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nonclinical staff, rather than physicians, tend to be most affected when an institution lays off workers.

At this rate, 2011 will most likely close with 120 mass layoffs at hospitals, leading to about 7,876 people claiming unemployment benefits. This is comparable to much of the past decade, but below 2009 and 2010, when the recession was making its mark on the medical industry. The recession ran from December 2007 to June 2009, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. Most experts say health care is a lagging economic indicator.

A total of 152 mass layoffs occurred at hospitals in 2009, the largest annual sum for the past decade. The incidents affected at least 11,787 employees, the second-highest number for the previous 10 years. A large number of people were affected by mass layoffs at hospitals in 2005, because of closings caused by Hurricane Katrina, with 97 incidents and 13,282 people losing their jobs.

A record 137 mass layoffs in the hospital industry was posted in 2010, costing 10,490 people their jobs.

Some guarded economic optimism was supported by a long-running staffing company survey.

The quarterly Manpower Employment Outlook Survey for the U.S., released Dec. 13, 2011, found that the number of companies planning to hire in the first quarter of 2012 went up. Manpower has been surveying more than 18,000 employers, including many in health care, for nearly 50 years.

“Slow but steady momentum has improved employer confidence, which is likely why more employers are planning to hire in the first quarter,” said Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup president of the Americas.

The seasonally adjusted net employment outlook for the economy as a whole went up 9% for the first quarter of 2012. Jobs in health and education were expected to increase by 3%. The numbers represent nine consecutive quarters of growth in projected hiring.

Medical Business Resources has been helping medical facilities run more efficiently since 1996. Improving your fiscal health is just a phone call away at 303-409-7722.  For a medical revenue cycle analysis and to learn more visit MBR at  www.mbrus.com . Our Health Capital Consultants are ready to help!

Washington – The threat of an across-the-board Medicare physician pay cut was defused with just over a week to spare, but the congressional agreement only maintains rates for an additional two months before Congress must act again to avoid a steep reduction.

The House and Senate on Dec. 23 approved a two-month payroll tax cut extension package that included a two-month doctor pay freeze. That means physicians will continue to receive 2011 rates for Medicare services they provide through the end of February, and lawmakers will need to agree on a longer-term patch if they are to prevent the 27.4% cut from taking effect on March 1.

The scheduled Jan. 1 cut came very close to becoming a reality for Medicare physicians. House and Senate leaders were in a deadlock over items in the payroll tax cut extension package that largely were unrelated to the Medicare physician pay issue. The impasse broke just before Christmas, when House Speaker John Boehner (R, Ohio) and other House GOP leaders dropped their opposition to a short-term Senate plan after securing minor technical corrections to the bill and an agreement from Democratic leaders to appoint negotiators to work on a longer-term package.

As health reform changes, healthcare leaders and Health Care Financial Management need to respond quickly and effectively.  Health Capital Consultants at Medical Business Resources use Revenue Cycle Strategies that help improve your bottom line and at the same time maintain regulatory compliance.  Maintaining and improving the fiscal health of healthcare facilities is what MBR has been doing since 1996.  They can make a positive impact for your facility too!  Call them at 303-409-7722 and to learn more about their services visit them at www.mbrus.com .

Medical Business Resources uses technology by using medical auditing tools to improve processes focusing on collecting every dollar owed the quickest and most efficient way possible and by driving costs out of the system. Improving your revenue cycle and cash recovery will definitely improve dependable cash flow for your facility.  Call MBR for more information about their Health Care Financial Services at 303-409-7722 and visit them at www.mbrus.com .

Medical Business Resources business is built upon an amazing group of talented Professional Health Capital Consultants. Their unique accomplishments and expertise provide a huge asset to MBR and to you!  Our consultants along with our medical auditing tools, consulting executive services, certified reviews and recovery are sure to improve any medical facilities fiscal health and dependable cash flow.  Log onto today at www.mbrus.com to learn more and call 303-409-7722 for more information.

Amednews: Investment in health information technology, the privacy and security of patient data, and ramping up social media efforts will be top concerns for health care organizations in 2012, according to a study by PwC’s Health Research Institute.

PwC made these predictions after the completion of a survey of 1,000 U.S. adults on their attitudes toward health care issues. Results were combined with an analysis of regulatory, government and economic issues that will affect health care next year.

“2012 will be a seminal year for the health industries as businesses wade through economic, regulatory and political uncertainty,” said Kelly Barnes, U.S. health industries practice leader at PwC. “One of the ways the health industry is responding to these uncertainties is by connecting in new ways with each other and their consumers as they rethink existing business models and previous notions about competition, cooperation and collaboration.”

Health informatics is viewed by many organizations as a means to improve patient care. PwC predicts that in 2012, health care organizations will invest more in information technology and forge data-sharing partnerships with other organizations, including those with whom they may be in competition.

The PwC survey found that 60% of the population would be comfortable sharing data if they were used to coordinate care, and 54% would agree to sharing it if the data were used to support real-time decision-making for their care. Other data uses patients support include an analysis of their doctor’s performance (36%) and identifying at-risk patients (29%).

But patients want their data to be handled securely, according to the report, and would choose one health care organization over another for its ability to secure their information.

In a separate report published in September, PwC found that nearly three-quarters of health care organizations said they are using, or intend to use, patient data for purposes other than treating patients. But only 47% said they have addressed privacy and security risks associated with those uses.

Its recent survey of patients found that 30% would select a hospital with clear privacy and security policies over another if cost, quality and access were equal.

Technology and access to information also would influence the decision of many patients, according to PwC. Twenty-eight percent would select a health care organization that offered online doctor consultations over others that didn’t, 17% would make that choice based on facilities that use an electronic medical record, and 5% would pick one that had a social media presence over one that did not.

The report found that social media will play a greater role in health care organizations’ strategies to improve health outcomes. The survey found that nearly one-third of survey respondents, including half of those under 35, have used social media channels for health care purposes.

“As more stakeholders enter the data-sharing mix through digitized records, mobile devices, social media and health databases, health care organizations need to build more granular access-control models to preve