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I have some question(s)....
From what I saw on the interview trail a while back, a lot of rural centers use NP/PA to treat when doctors aren't there. It's my understanding that it's just not financially feasible to keep a doctor in an office that is in the middle of nowhere and only treats less than 20 patients/day. Hence, people often use an NP just as a provider presence while machines are going - not for consults, under treats, sims, SBRT, brachy, etc while the doctor is only there 3 days/week. From my research it appears that medicare has been OK with this as long as it is a hospital based practice.
However, my biller is telling us that at a recent billing conference this phenomenon was discussed with the expert panel (including an ASTRO physician representative ?Zeitman maybe?) and they really frowned on this practice - suggesting (but not declaring) that this was fraudulent.
Could anyone shed some light on this or give any insight about your experience with this? It just seems that a lot of rural centers will cease to exist if you can't treat with a mid level in the building.
From what I saw on the interview trail a while back, a lot of rural centers use NP/PA to treat when doctors aren't there. It's my understanding that it's just not financially feasible to keep a doctor in an office that is in the middle of nowhere and only treats less than 20 patients/day. Hence, people often use an NP just as a provider presence while machines are going - not for consults, under treats, sims, SBRT, brachy, etc while the doctor is only there 3 days/week. From my research it appears that medicare has been OK with this as long as it is a hospital based practice.
However, my biller is telling us that at a recent billing conference this phenomenon was discussed with the expert panel (including an ASTRO physician representative ?Zeitman maybe?) and they really frowned on this practice - suggesting (but not declaring) that this was fraudulent.
Could anyone shed some light on this or give any insight about your experience with this? It just seems that a lot of rural centers will cease to exist if you can't treat with a mid level in the building.