Chiropractic OnLine Today's
HealthBeat

    Welcome to COT's HealthBeat Podcast
        Chiropractic OnLine Today is pleased to present a
    Chiropractic "Radio" Segment to the Health Community.
               Return to HealthBeat main page

Please Vote for HealthBeat!
 

HEALTHBEAT SHOW NOTES .... Episode #76 - Recorded December 22, 2006

Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of HealthBeat, Chiropractic OnLine Today’s Health, News and informational Podcast.

In this week’s news:  We’ll Look At –  

• New York State Chiropractic Association and ACN

• NYSCA Urges Members to Read Fine Print

• Lumbar Disc Degeneration

• Key to avoiding whiplash injury may lie in head restraint positioning

• Congress halts 5% Medicare fee cut

For HealthBeat, This is Dr. Todd Eglow.

Welcome to HealthBeat Podcast #76, COT’s Holiday Netcast edition, recorded December 22, 2006.  HealthBeat is Chiropractic OnLine Today’s radio program, providing current news and commentary about Chiropractic and Health.

As we begin episode #76, everyone at Chiropractic OnLine Today would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season, and best wishes for the upcoming new year.

This week’s Episode is sponsored by DaVinci Laboratories.  Please surf to our web site at ChiropracticRadio.com and click on the DaVinci link for your Health and Nutritional needs.

If you are interested in creating personalized Healthbeat podcasts for your office or website, to help attract new patients, please surf to our web site and send us an Email ….

…. or Skype us by typing in “healthbeat”, all in small letters.

A quick programming note…. We have updated COT HealthBeat’s XML feed that you see in your Reader such as iTunes.  You can still listen to and download all HealthBeat episodes by surf to our web site at ChiropracticRadio.com.

Finally, Chiropractic OnLine Today has always provided our news and education content for free and plan on continuing this policy.  However, we do request that if you are enjoying these podcasts, that you surf to ChiropracticRadio.com and consider clicking on our PayPal link to make a donation to keep these Podcasts airing.  We thank everyone for their continued support.

And Now for some news ….  

New York State Chiropractic Association and ACN

The New York State Chiropractic Association (NYSCA) recently sent out an email requesting help in gathering information for the American Chiropractic Association’s ongoing battle with ACN.

The ACA has received a request from the Office of the New York Attorney General for additional information pertaining to ACN.  The ACA is requesting information from providers which show discrepancies between patient plan descriptions of coverage and what is actually covered. 

To provide this information to the AG we are requesting sanitized benefit verification forms from providers.  For example, a provider's office calls to verify benefits on a patient and is told up to 3 passive modalities will be covered, but when the claim is billed ACN will pay for /authorize only one passive modality. 

If any providers have documentation of situations like this, that information would be very helpful.  Additionally, if you have any documentation from ACN which explains any ACN policy of limiting modalities, that information would be helpful as well.  

Because this request has come directly from the Attorney General Office the NYSCA requests that any information be sent to ACA's Insurance Relations Department asap. 

Information can be sent via fax to 703-516-4976 or Email - Jlenhardt@acatoday.org

NYSCA Urges Members to Read Fine Print

In another urgent Email to New York State Chiropractic Association members, the NYSCA States the following:

Dear NYSCA Member

It has come to the NYSCA’s attention that chiropractors throughout New York State have been receiving a solicitation from ACN Group that presents ACN participating providers with an “exciting new business opportunity,” in that ACN Group will provide the ACN network for “Universal SmartComp’s chiropractic . . . workers’ compensation program beginning January 1, 2007.”

In return for this “exciting opportunity” – i.e., access to Universal SmartComp’s workers’ compensation patients, ACN Group participating providers agree to discount their fees to receive the lesser of:

      (i)   eighty percent (80%) of any applicable state, federal or other governing agency mandated fee schedule;

      (ii)  the established global or daily fee cap of $45.00; or

      (iii) eighty percent (80%) of billed charges.

What this announcement does not state is that providers may opt-out of this plan.  However, in order to do so, providers must opt-out affirmatively.  It is the NYSCA’s understanding that providers must affirmatively opt-out within fifteen days of receiving the letter/announcement.

To affirmatively opt-out, you must fax a letter to ACN/Universal SmartComp at (763)-595-3333, advising them that you “formally withdraw your participation in and from the Universal SmartComp program immediately.”  It is also recommended that you make clear your intent to remain in network with any other ACN Group products in which you are currently enrolled.  If you elect to opt-out, be sure to keep a copy of your opt-out letter and your office fax log, showing that you transmitted your opt-out letter to ACN Group/Universal SmartComp, that the fax went through, and that it was received by ACN/Universal SmartComp.

Keep in mind that some participating provider contracts contain “most favored nation” clauses that require providers to accept and reduce their fees to the lowest fee they have accepted in any other participating provider contracted fee schedule.  This may have an impact on any existing contracts you participate in as a provider.

If you decide to opt-out, remember to do so immediately by sending a fax to: 763-595-3333.  For more information please contact ACN Provider Services Department at: (800) 873-4575.

For more information, surf to www.nysca.com

Lumbar Disc Degeneration

A study in the November 1, 2006 issue of the journal www.SpineJournal.com, presented a study to determine whether patterns of lumbar disc degeneration related to the type of work an individual does.

To investigate, researchers performed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on 109 women between the ages of 45 and 62 years. Half of the study participants were nurses (physical work) and half were administrators (seated work). Some of the subjects in both occupational groups had persistent low-back pain (LBP).

 “Except for endplate (Modic) changes at L5-S1, MRI findings did not differ between the four groups, namely, nurses and secretaries with and without LBP. When analyzing the MRI findings within the two vocational groups, nerve root compromise and endplate changes in the lower lumbar spine were found to be significant … risk factors for LBP.

Disc degeneration, disc herniation, nerve root compromise, and facet joint osteoarthritis were present in more than 50% of the intervertebral spaces studied.” “These findings give evidence that in subjects performing non-heavy work, patterns of lumbar disc degeneration are not associated with the job type and characteristic physical loadings,” concludes the article.

For more information, surf to November 1, 2006 issue located at http://spinejournal.com/

Key to avoiding whiplash injury may lie in head restraint positioning

To avoid pain associated with whiplash injury, safety considerations in cars could go beyond seat belts and airbags to examine the position of the driver and passenger head restraints, according to research at the Medical College of Wisconsin. The study was conducted at the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center.

The study, by Brian Stemper, PhD, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, resulted in the most comprehensively validated computer model for whiplash reported in scientific literature.

According to Dr. Stemper, "The practical aspect of this study is that you want to set your head restraint so that it's very close to the back of your head."  "Each time drivers and passengers get in a car, they should be sure the head restraint is correctly positioned to minimize injuries."

Whiplash injuries affect the soft tissues of the cervical spine (e.g., ligaments and intervertebral discs) and can be sustained in any type of crash but occur most often in low speed rear-end collisions.

The injury affects more than one million people in the United States each year and results in symptoms of neck pain, headaches and lower back soreness. A high percentage of all patients sustaining whiplash injury report long-term pain. A 1999 Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study found that 26 percent of rear-struck vehicle drivers reported neck injuries.

Results from this study were compared to a previously published head restraint rating system, wherein lower cervical extension magnitudes from this study exceeded mean physiologic limits for restraint positions rated good, acceptable, marginal, and poor.

If you have been in a motor vehicle accident, it is recommended that you contact your Doctor of Chiropractic for a consultation and examination to see if you could benefit from chiropractic care.

Surf to our Show Notes for specific recommendations - http://www.mcw.edu/display/router.asp?docid=19993

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V5S-4HJ4808-1&_user=10&_coverDate=03%2F31%2F2006&_alid=510701469&_rdoc=1&_fmt=summary&_orig=search&_cdi=5794&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=786fe64bdbc6e8b766232e4443e40db7

Congress halts 5% Medicare fee cut

Congress, in one of the final acts of the session, passed legislation that halts a 5 percent cut in Medicare physician fees. The reduction would have gone into effect on Jan. 1, 2007, in addition to the 8 percent cut doctors of chiropractic will incur in February 2007.

Instead, the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, the omnibus bill that contained the physician fee provision, provides no increase in the congressionally mandated sustainable growth rate (SGR) mechanism which works to hamper spending in the Medicare program. The president is expected to sign the bill.

Although the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 provides some measure of relief, providers in Medicare still face fee cuts for 2007. Under a final rule — issued by CMS per the congressionally mandated five-year review of the work values of billing codes — doctors of chiropractic will face an average 8 percent cut starting in February 2007. This rule also imposes significant cuts to radiological and imaging services.

The bill also includes a provision that will allow for a 1.5 percent increase in reimbursement for providers who report on existing quality measures established by CMS. Quality measures are developed by several different organizations through a rigorous process grounded in evidence-based medicine. The measures, approved by CMS, are geared toward primary care practices and have been utilized in the Physician Voluntary Reporting Program.

The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 gives CMS authorization to continue an exception process for Medicare beneficiaries to apply for medically necessary therapy services if their treatment is expected to exceed the cap in 2007.

For more information, surf to the American Chiropractic Association at www.acatoday.org

As always, please surf to our Podcast Show Notes at ChiropractiRadio.com for a full listing of web references mentioned in today’s show.

And remember - COT’s Healthbeat always recommends discussing any nutritional or exercise lifestyle modifications with a qualified healthcare professional.

Thank you for listening…. As always, We Want to hear from you.  Please send us emails…. Simply surf to our Web Site at ChiropracticRadio.com and click on the Email link.

You can also leave us Voice Mail…. Simply open up your Skype and type in “healthbeat”, all in small letters.

If you have an idea for a future Health Segment, please feel free to contact me directly via email …. The address is: healthbeat@chiropracticradio.com

We also would appreciate your vote at Podcastalley.com.  If you are enjoying these podcasts, please surf to our HealthBeat homepage and click on the Podcast Alley link.

If you have a Web Site for your practice and you would like to add content to help attract more patients, please consider adding a personalized HealthBeat segments to your site. Many listeners are finding this a useful content addition to an Office’s Web Site.  For more information, please send me an Email at healthbeat@chiropracticradio.com

While at our Web Site, please remember to consider making a donation to help keep these Podcasts airing.  Listener support such as yours, via our PayPal link, does help in allowing us to bring these Podcasts to you weekly.

Finally, I leave you with the following quote:

"There is no such thing as a 'self-made' man. We are made up of thousands of others. Everyone who has ever done a kind deed for us, or spoken one word of encouragement to us, has entered into the make-up of our character and of our thoughts, as well as our success." -- George Burton Adams

For Chiropractic OnLine Today’s HealthBeat, This is Dr. Todd Eglow.

Please Vote for HealthBeat on Podcast Alley!