All the Tools You Need To Succeed With MIPS 2022
There is no doubt that technology has revolutionized the healthcare industry, but the rapid changes are sometimes hard to keep up with. Each new advance in technology makes it easier for doctors to communicate with each other, keep records up to date and facilitate a more streamlined and effective approach to medicine. All of these are good things.
The potential problem is that it is also true that adapting to these new advances can be the source of additional stress for doctors and their staff. There are so many details that must be kept straight and just about the time one gets them all figured out, the details change. MIPS 2022 is not the same as MIPS 2021. While many of the changes may be subtle, not keeping up to date with the differences can lead to a substantial loss of revenue. What medical practitioners need is a trusted partner that can help them adapt and stay current. TRIARQ is just such a partner.
It is absolutely vital that the doctors and staff at any medical facility stay fluent in all of the newer technology as it relates to healthcare because MIPS, or the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System, requires the use of the new technology. If doctors and their staff don’t have the tools they need to make this payer program work for them, they may find themselves struggling to succeed within the MIPS 2022.
What Is MIPS?
The MIPS program is a value-based program that is the framework used by Medicare to determine a healthcare practitioner’s eligibility for and rate of payment after services are rendered. The system gathers performance scores and, based on a practice’s or individual’s overall score, they may receive a bonus, be charged a penalty, or receive the standard payment. It is easy to see why succeeding as an independent medical professional requires the proper handling of the MIPS program each and every year.
Doctors, medical practitioners, and their staffs are scored in four key areas:
- Quality of care given
- Steps taken to improve the quality and cost effectiveness of care
- How well the practice has integrated themselves into the local healthcare networks
- Overall costs
The total of these scores for any individual patient or procedure is added to the scores of all the other patients for the individual doctor or practice and an overall all score is compiled to create a rating. It is this rating that determines any payment adjustment made to a practice‘s Medicare Part B claims.
To make things just a bit more difficult, the MIPS changes a bit every year. The goals a doctor must meet to achieve a rating worthy of a bonus inch up every year and the specific qualification guidelines shift as well. Managing and updating MIPS compliance activities can easily overtax a doctor and medical staff unless they find someone to help them.
Ways a Management Services Organization Can Help an Independent Medical Practice
There are three major areas that must be handled effectively in order for any medical practice to succeed within the MIPS. When in search of the best management services organization, a doctor should take a close look at how the organization will help in these areas.
Intuitive EMR
The EMR, or electronic medical records system, is the backbone of any modern medical practice. These systems facilitate the keeping of medical records, scheduling of procedures and appointments both within and outside of the practice, and the filing of claims with both private insurance companies and the Medicare system.
To achieve a good rating in the MIPS system, the EMR system being used must be intuitive and rapidly adaptable. It also must be easy to use in terms of MIPS data. If the system does not make it simple for patient data to be entered and MIPS scores to be collected and monitored, then there is a good chance that some of that data will get lost in a hectic, fast-paced medical office. The best EMR systems will prompt the practitioner to ask the right questions and enter the complete data about procedures, medications and follow-up care.
A User-Friendly and Complete Dashboard
The visual dashboard should serve as the single stop for medical professionals who want to see how they are progressing with their MIPS goals. It should be able not only to track how things have gone so far this year but also predict where the office will stand at the end of the year given its current rate.
This feature makes it very easy to see areas that need to improve, and by how much, to achieve bonus payments.
Training
All of these features and tools will not help the independent medical practitioner and their staff if they do not know how to use the software effectively. Every managed service provider should offer a full regimen of training for everyone involved, along with a 24/7 help desk to help anyone who gets stuck or needs a bit of a refresher course.
Training should also be offered as to why the metrics and data collected are so vital to the success of the practice as a whole. If practitioners understand the risks of getting it wrong and the rewards of getting it right, they will be far more likely to be driven to get it right, every time.
TRIARQ: A Trusted Partner and So Much More
TRIARQ has been the champion of the independent doctor since its own beginnings. TRIARQ staff members understand the challenges that independent medical practices face and they know how to help those practices succeed in the highly competitive world of value-based care.
When it comes to succeeding with the MIPS 2022, TRIARQ offers medical professionals all of the features listed above and a commitment to their client’s success. To find out more about how TRIARQ can help, visit our MIPS 2022 page. Here we have a video explaining the changes made to the MIPS for 2022 as well as how to best adapt to them. In addition, the page offers many informative Quick Guides that go into the specifics concerning the reporting of data about individual procedures, treatment plans and diagnoses.
For those medical practices that need much more than just help with wee MIPS 2022 compliance, TRIARQ can help. We are a full-service management organization and can help with EMR, care management, network integration, billing and coding, and much more.