Ask Linda

Why This Topic Matters

Medicare fee schedule updates can change practice revenue materially, especially for high-volume cardiology services. Understanding the general impact of RVU and conversion factor changes helps practices plan ahead and evaluate reimbursement trends.

Article Sections

1. Medicare fee schedule changes and practice impact

   Introduces the fee schedule changes affecting cardiology practices and explains the need to evaluate more than one possible payment scenario. The discussion focuses on broad reimbursement components and planning implications.

2. High-volume cardiology services to review

   Identifies example cardiology services commonly used for revenue impact review. The section frames which categories of services may be most important to analyze first.

3. Five steps to a clearer picture

   Outlines a multi-step approach for estimating the effect of fee schedule updates on practice revenue. The section covers the use of CMS-published data, comparison methods, and projection of overall financial impact.

4. How to calculate your 2008 Medicare fees

   Presents the general calculation framework used to estimate Medicare fees from the published fee schedule inputs. The section summarizes the components needed to build a locality-adjusted payment estimate.

5. Resources

   Points readers to CMS source material and related downloadable reference files. The section supports further review of the underlying fee schedule data.