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HEALTHBEAT SHOW NOTES .... Episode #91 - Recorded April 6, 2007

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 –  

• CMS extends deadline for new CMS-1500 Insurance form

• Study: Pregnant women need expanded musculoskeletal care

• Results of Chiropractic Treatment of Lumbopelvic Fixation in an Orthopedic Department

• US Court Bans Use Light Cigarette Terminology

• And Finally, Health Corner discusses Health Savings Accounts

For HealthBeat, This is Dr. Todd Eglow.

Welcome to HealthBeat Podcast #91, recorded April 6, 2007.  HealthBeat is Chiropractic OnLine Today’s radio program, providing current news and commentary about Chiropractic and Health.

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

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And Now for some news ….

RSS Info – In this edition of HealthBeat, we discuss the CMS Extending the Deadline for usage of New CMS-1500 Insurance Forms, Pregnant Women and need for Musculoskeletal Care, Results of a study examining Chiropractic Treatment of Lumbopelvic Fixations in an Orthopedic Facility, US Court Bans Usage of Light Cigarette Terminology and Finally, Health Corner presents a Discussion about Health Savings Accounts.

For information about adding Personalized HealthBeat Podcasts to your office’s Web Site, to help you attract new patients, please Email us at – healthbeat@chiropracticradio.com

And remember to surf to our Show Notes, located at http://www.ChiropracticRadio.com

CMS extends deadline for new 1500 form

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Services has extended its deadline for using its revised 1500 form because of incorrect formatting of the new form. A June 1 deadline for implementation is being targeted.

In July 2006, the Form CMS-1500 (12-90) was revised by the National Uniform Claim Committee (NUCC) predominantly for the purpose of accommodating the National Provider Identifier.

Since that time, the industry has been preparing for the implementation of the revised Form CMS-1500 (08-05). In September 2006, Medicare announced it would implement the revised Form CMS-1500 (08-05) on Jan. 1, 2007, with dual acceptability of both versions until March 31, 2007. According to the plan, beginning April 1, 2007, the only acceptable version of the form would be the Form CMS-1500 (08-05) and the prior version, Form CMS-1500 (12-90), would be rejected.

CMS has discovered there are incorrectly formatted versions of the revised form being sold by print vendors, specifically the Government Printing Office (GPO). GPO has determined that the source files it received from the NUCC’s authorized forms designer were improperly formatted. This resulted in the sale of both printed forms and negatives which do not comply with the form specifications.

CMS has decided to extend the acceptance period of Form CMS-1500 (12-90) version beyond the original April 1 deadline while this situation is resolved. Contractors will be directed to continue to accept the Form CMS-1500 (12-90) until notified by CMS to cease.

• The old version of the form contains “Approved OMB-0938-0008 FORM CMS-1500 (12-90)” on the bottom of the form (typically on the lower right corner) signifying the version is the December 1990 version.

• The revised version contains “Approved OMB-0938-0999 FORM CMS-1500 (08-05)” on the bottom of the form signifying the version is the August 2005 version.

On properly formatted claim forms, there will be approximately a one-quarter inch gap between the tip of the red arrow above the vertically stacked word “CARRIER” and the top edge of the paper. If the tip of the red arrow is touching or close to touching the top edge of the paper, then the form is not printed to specifications.

It is important to note that this issue involves the implementation of the new Form CMS-1500 (08-05) only and does not impact the May 23, 2007, implementation date of the NPI.

Questions may be directed to Brian Reitz at Brian.Reitz@cms.hhs.gov

Source: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, www.cms.hhs.gov

Study: Pregnant women need expanded musculoskeletal care

Despite the high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain during pregnancy, few women in underserved populations receive treatment for their low back pain, according to a February 2007 study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT). 

Moreover, researchers found that pain in a previous pregnancy may predict a high risk for musculoskeletal complaints in future pregnancies.

According to the study’s chief author, 85 percent of women surveyed reported they had not received treatment for their musculoskeletal pain, and of the small percentage who perceived that their back complaints were addressed, less than 10 percent were satisfied with the symptom relief they obtained.

Researchers surveyed more than 600 women at a clinic that serves predominantly an uninsured, underinsured or Medicaid-insured population. Two-thirds of the women who responded to the survey reported back pain, and nearly half of all women reported pain at two or more locations, including pelvic pain and mid-back pain.

The study also found that close to 80 percent of women who reported sleep disturbances had back pain, whereas only 8 percent of women without pain reported problems sleeping. In addition, three-fourths of the women who reported pain also described use of pain medication.

The study was the result of on-going collaboration between Logan College of Chiropractic and the Department of Obstetrics at Washington University School of Medicine.

Surf to our Show Notes for a link to this study - http://www.jmptonline.org/article/PIIS0161475406003320/abstract?browse_volume=30&issue_key=TOC%40%40JOURNALSNOSUPP%40YJMPT%400030%400002&issue_preview=no&select1=no&select1=no&vol=

Results of Chiropractic Treatment of Lumbopelvic Fixation in 44 Patients Admitted to an Orthopedic Department

The February 2007 edition of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT) reported on a study examining the results of chiropractic care for patients with low back pain in an orthopedic department.

The target group consisted of 44 consecutive patients who experienced sudden and painful low back pain caused by lumbar flexion and rotation without axial loading. Clinical and neurologic examinations by orthopedic surgeons revealed no pathology; in addition, skeletal radiography, computerized tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging findings were all normal.

Diagnosis before hospitalization was acute sciatica in all cases. Examination by the doctor of chiropractic indicated that the patients had lumbopelvic fixation.

All but two patients returned to work. The period of sick leave among the patients was reduced by two thirds as compared with that associated with conventional medical treatment.

The authors report that to their knowledge, this is the first report on the work of a chiropractor participating within an orthopedic department of a Norwegian hospital as initiated by the hospital and with full support of the staff.

The results support the initiative of the Norwegian government to increase reference to chiropractors in treating patients with neuromusculoskeletal dysfunctions.

Further, the authors of the study believe that the inclusion of chiropractors within hospital orthopedic departments is feasible and provides a patient care resource that may benefit not only the patients but also the department as a whole.

Surf to our Show Notes for a link to this study - http://www.jmptonline.org/article/PIIS0161475406003356/abstract

US Court Bans Use Light Cigarette Terminology

According to a story from the British Journal of Medicine, tobacco makers can no longer use words such as "light" and "low tar" to promote their products outside the United States, a US federal judge has ruled.

In a statement, William Corr, executive director of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the decision by Judge Gladys Kessler a triumph for global public health.

But one leading researcher on tobacco marketing and public health warned that cigarette makers were already finding other ways to suggest that some of their products are safer than others, especially in Europe and Australia, where "light," "mild," and similar adjectives have already been banned in cigarette packaging and advertisements.

U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler, who issued a landmark ruling against the tobacco industry in August, said in a follow-up decision that a ban on the use of health messages should "apply to actions of the [tobacco companies] outside the United States."

Kessler rejected the tobacco companies' request for a clarification that would limit the restrictions to statements they made, and cigarettes they sold, in the United States.

Surf to our Show Notes for more information - http://money.cnn.com/2007/03/16/news/companies/tobacco.reut/?postversion=2007031617

Health Corner – In this edition of HealthBeat’s Health Corner, we present a discussion from CNBC concerning the rise in enrollment of Health Savings Accounts, also known as HSAs.

President Bush created Health Savings Accounts in 2003 when he signed the Medicare Bill. HSAs are intended to help individuals save tax-free for future qualified medical expenses and retiree healthcare expenses.

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.

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"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
– George Bernard Shaw

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

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