Physicians Receive Medicare Incentive for e-Prescribing

Pizaazz reports in this article that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have announced an incentive plan for physicians so that providers will receive a 2% bonus on total Medicare charges during 2009 for using qualified e-prescribing system.

According to CMS, providers must use the e-prescribing systems that:
-Communicate electronically with the patient’s pharmacy,
-Remind physicians about cheaper alternatives (if available),
-Provide Medicare formulary information, and
-Alert prescribers about allergies, improper dosing and drug interactions.

DragNet Technologies Helps Health Care Providers

For the past 10 years, Medicare and Medicaid physicians have seen their profit margins shrink from 25% to just under 6%. Much of this change has been attributed to increasing complexity in recording and coding systems. Mentioned here, DragNet Technologies has

"announced the availability of their downloadable medical billing code lists directed toward the needs of healthcare providers all across the United States, especially in the Home Health arena." The article further mentions that "DragNet's goal is to arm healthcare providers in our country with the necessary information to get paid - and get paid quickly - for the services they have provided to Medicare and Medicaid patients"

Hopefully this will help Medicare and Medicaid physicians, and create a trickle down effect to help patients. With increased ease, more physicians maybe inclined to participate in these programs.