Medical News – Page 15 – Tarrant County Physician Online

What to Do If a Staff Member or Patient Tests Positive

By Joey Berlin

Originally published on the Texas Medical Association website.

As cases of COVID-19 continue to climb, the greater the chance it will find its way to your office. If it hasn’t happened already, no doubt you’ve been bracing for that possibility for months.

The Texas Medical Association is here to make sure you’re prepared.

The TMA COVID-19 Task Force has created a guide for what to do when someone in your office – whether a staff member or a patient – tests positive for the disease. The guide includes links to important information on disinfection, work-restriction, and legal and ethical resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Texas law, and more.

TMA’s guide explains three steps to take following a positive test:

Follow routine cleaning and disinfection procedures – The guide contains links for recommended environmental control and personal protective equipment (PPE) practices from CDC and EPA.
Notify your staff of the potential exposure, and implement appropriate work restrictions – The document includes an adaptation of CDC’s Healthcare Personnel Assessment Guide, which breaks down how to handle at-risk staff members, plus tips on determining when people with confirmed COVID-19 may have become infectious.
Notify any patients who might have been exposed and recommend appropriate public health guidance – Included is an adaptation of CDC’s Public Health Guidance for Community-Related Exposure chart, as well as links to ethical and legal guidance on patient privacy laws and regulations.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 7/9/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 16,700*

COVID-19 related deaths: 259

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 7490

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Thursday, July 9, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.

Tyler Radiology Associates and East Texas Radiology Consultants Merge with Radiology Associates of North Texas

Radiology Associates of North Texas, P.A. (RADNTX) is participating in a merger that will further expand the organization. Tyler Radiology Associates and East Texas Radiology Consultants are joining with the group; through this merger RADNTX is welcoming 28 new radiologists, expanding the practice to over 200 physicians. The organization continues to be the largest private radiology practice in Texas and one of the largest in the nation, with plans for continued expansion.

Both practices decided to merge after connecting with RADNTX’s Independent Radiology Network (IRN). The IRN is designed to provide expanded resources and improved quality for private practice radiology practices throughout Texas and the surrounding states. Partnering with other high-performing regional radiologists is a foundational endeavor of RADNTX’s physician leadership.

“Tyler Radiology Associates (TRA) is proud to enter into a partnership with Radiology Associates of North Texas.,” says Dr. Robert Weissmann with Tyler Radiology Associates. “TRA believes in independent, physician-led radiology practices. After evaluating several options, we are excited to have found a partner that shares our values and vision for healthcare in East Texas.”

RADNTX’s goal through the IRN is to provide Texas-based radiology practices that desire to remain independent and wholly physician-owned but require expanded service levels access to RADNTX’s world-class infrastructure. Through the IRN, RADNTX is able to provide practices with information technology services that include an integrated worklist driven platform, as well as billing and revenue cycle management, clinical coordination, increased sub-specialization, overnight final reads, quality and compliance programs, analytics and reporting, business services, and much more.

“What initially brought us to Radiology Associates was its reputation for honesty, integrity, and quality in the radiology market. Radiology Associates’ goal is to provide maximum support for the continued private practice of radiology in the state of Texas,” says Dr. Randy Erwin with East Texas Radiology Consultants. “For private practice to survive and prosper, a large organization dedicated to their members, fellow physicians, and patients is paramount.”

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 7/8/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 16,180*

COVID-19 related deaths: 254

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 7018

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Wednesday, July 8, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 7/2/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 13,423*

COVID-19 related deaths: 233

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 5517

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Thursday, July 2, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.

Insurance Payments for Telemedicine Visits Extended to September

By David Doolittle

Originally published on the Texas Medical Association’s website.

Texas-regulated insurers must continue to pay for telemedicine services, including mental health visits, at the same rate as in-person visits through Sept. 12, the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) said today.

TDI announced it is extending the requirement that was part of an emergency rule that has been in place since March. It was set to expire July 14.

Under the emergency rule, state-regulated health insurers and health maintenance organizations (HMOs) also must:

Cover telemedicine services using any platform permitted by state law; and
Not require more documentation for telemedicine services than they require for in-person services.

To make telemedicine available to more patients and their physicians during the emergency declaration period, many state and federal rules and regulations regarding telehealth, including a waiver for audio-only visits, have been relaxed temporarily.

Click here to read the full article.

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 6/29/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 11,739*

COVID-19 related deaths: 225

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 5059

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Monday, June 29, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 6/27/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 11,083*

COVID-19 related deaths: 224

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 5012

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Saturday, June 27, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.

COVID-19 Deadlines for Doctors

Originally published on Texas Medical Association’s website.

The following deadlines and extensions are in effect during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aetna is moving its provider portal to Availity (from NaviNet) effective May 31. After that date, you’ll lose access to Aetna on NaviNet, including electronic transactions. Aetna also:

Has extended coverage for commercial telemedicine service, including audio-only visits, through Aug. 4; and
Will no longer waive cost sharing for any in-network telemedicine visits for commercial plans starting June 4.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas has extended access to telemedicine/telehealth services with no cost sharing for all medically necessary, covered services and treatments through June 30. That access was set to expire May 31.

Cigna will extend certain cost-share waivers, including customer cost-sharing for telemedicine screenings for COVID-19, and other benefits through at least July 31.

Several Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program(CHIP) flexibilities, including paying for Texas Health Steps (THSteps) medical checkups via telemedicine and CHIP copay waivers, will be extended through June 30. Payments had been set to expire May 31.

Medicare’s 2020 Quality Payment Program (QPP) registration window is open for the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) web interface reporting method and Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey through June 30.

Medicare’s 2019 QPP final performance feedback, which includes your overall MIPS score (0-100 point scale) and 2021 Medicare payment adjustment (bonus or cut) worth up to 7%, is expected July 1 via the QPP portal. Physicians who did not submit any 2019 MIPS data or who filed an application for an exception due to COVID-19 should not receive a 2021 payment cut.

Find each payer’s effective and expiration dates of waivers on this chart on the Texas Medical Association’s COVID-19 Resource Center.

Tarrant County COVID-19 Activity – 6/26/20

COVID-19 Positive cases: 10,363*

COVID-19 related deaths: 218

Recovered COVID-19 cases: 4771

Data from Tarrant County Public Heath’s (TCPH) report of COVID-19 activity in Tarrant County, updated Friday, June 26, 2020. Find more COVID-19 information from TCPH here.

* These data are provisional and are subject to change at any time.

Deaths and recovered cases are included in total COVID-19 positive cases.