BHM Speakers Meet with Success at NAMCP Fall 2009 Managed Care Forum
The National Association of Managed Care Providers Fall Managed Care Forum held Nov. 12th and 13th, 2009 was the must attend event for healthcare professionals this fall season. From the elegant location at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas to the enticing line up of dynamic speakers the forum was filled with opportunities for healthcare professions to remain on the cutting edge of healthcare industry news and education.
The forum which focused thought provoking topics, and expert insight provided attendees with opportunities to directly affect the success of their organizations. “Keynote, concurrent, and workshop sessions as well as networking events and an exhibit hall filled with product and service solutions provided the best networking opportunities and presented innovative solutions to today’s healthcare challenges” stated one of the Forums representatives.
Among the panel of experts at the forum were 4 representatives of BHM who gave a variety of talks, all of which proved to be well attended. Dr. Rosenberg, President and CEO of Behavioral Health Management delivered an insightful and informative talk about ADHD and recent advances in the treatment of the disease. This talk which focused on Hyperactivity and Impulsivity gave new insight into diagnosis, management and treatment of this common disease from both the adolescent and adult treatment perspectives. Dr. Rafeyan, a notable physician gave a talk focusing on Depression. Specifically addressed were the financial and fiscal impacts of the disease from a patient, societal, and payer perspective. Cost effective disease management of Bipolar disorder was the subject of a talk given by Dr. Faber who not only provided participants with a thorough overview of the disease, but focused on how effective disease management could benefit healthcare organizations and improve their bottom lines. Finally Dr. Sicuro, also representing BHM gave provided a presentation for providers focused on Alzheimer’s disease. Early diagnosis and effective treatment were topics which were explored providing listeners with a variety of information covering everything from latest treatment options, to more effective and responsive diagnosis within various healthcare environments.
With near capacity attendance and audience feedback ratings of 3.6-3.8 (on a scale of 1-4) BHM executives consider the forum a success for both those who attended and those who gave presentations. “It is our goal as an organization to continue to provide and present relative, informative, and groundbreaking information to medical professionals and healthcare insiders,” stated Mark Rosenberg, CEO of Behavioral health who went on to state “we look forward to the upcoming spring forum and the opportunities it will provide for all members of the healthcare field to stay up to date with the latest information, and the inspiring ways which it can be used to have a positive impact within their organizations.”
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BHM Presentations at US Psychiatric Congress Picked Up by National Publications
Among the recent presenters at the US Psychiatric and Mental Health Congress of 2009 which was held on Nov. 2nd-5th at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV was BHMs own President and CEO Mark Rosenberg. Two presentations were delivered on practice management which concentrated on reducing denials and improving profitability, hot topics in recent healthcare news.
The first talk entitled Understanding Managed Care: Reducing Denials provided listeners with a detailed understanding of the authorization and denial process that Managed Care Use. In addition to this attendees learned the rules that Managed Care Companies should be following and gained valuable insight into the entire appeals process, and how impactful good follow up can be for an organization. Following this Dr. Rosenberg provided listeners with the CORE principles that BHM expert advisors implement to reduce denials within healthcare organizations. “Health care claims which are rejected or denied lead to millions of dollars of lost revenue each year” stated one BHM insider. This is one reason why understanding denials and how to prevent them can be so pivotal to the success of an organization.
The second talk which Dr. Rosenberg presented at the congress was entitled Understanding Managed Care: Increasing Profitability. Any healthcare or managed care professional could find benefit for their organization within the talk’s main points which covered data tracking, benchmarking, and improving practice outcomes. In addition to these topics the billing cycle was addressed in depth with the focus on how an organization could immediately utilize key strategies to improve the amount and the rate at which revenue is collected.
From coding to collections, denials to data tracking all key ingredients to improving the success and profitability were covered. Following the presentation Dr. Rosenberg was available to attendees to address specific concerns that they may have had within their own organizations. Besides proving a valuable resource for those who attended the advice of BHM continued its impact when a portion of Rosenberg’s presentation was picked up by the The Psychiatric Times. The Nov. 18th, 2009 edition of The Psychiatric Times concentrates on the four most effective steps an organization can implement in order to decrease their no show appointments. A full summary of these points can be found in the Dec. 2009 BHM Newsletter.
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BHM Mental Health Parity Whitepaper Picked Up by Healthcare Websites
 The BHM Whitepaper entitled Mental Health Parity Preparedness was recently picked up by two notable healthcare websites. The white paper which gives a great overview of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act from the perspective of proponents and opponents also focuses on what Managed Care Companies can do to prepare for the coming changes.
The BHM white paper was picked up in December. 2009 by Wellsphere, a leading healthcare reference website whose mission is “to help millions of people live healthier, happier lives by connecting them with the knowledge, people, and tools they need to manage and improve their health.” Beyond providing medical information for its viewers Wellspere helps to connect healthcare industry insiders. The site boasts of many interactive features including numerous search engines, access to prominent healthcare writers, and an index of health related blogs.
Additionally in December Mental Health Parity Preparedness was featured in a on a Healthcare Management Consulting index site, and was the focus of a Google Healthcare Web Elements banner. This site which gives access and serves as a directory for healthcare management firms featured a descriptive paragraph and interactive link the BHM whitepaper.
“When writing the white paper we wanted to let organizations know that there was something that they could do to prepare their organization for the upcoming parity changes. It was also our goal to give general insight into the topic from numerous perspectives in a format that was relevant to a wide reader base” Stated Danyell Jones, a BHM representative. Jones further went on to state that “we are very excited that our paper is being picked up and proving to be a useful resource for a variety of people in the healthcare profession.”
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BHM Welcomes New Senior Vice President of Clinical Operations
 Behavioral Health Management is excited to announce the appointment of Mike Forrester, PhD, MA to the position of SeniorVice President of Clinical Operations. In this role Dr. Forrester will be responsible for all Clinical Operations related work within BHM. Prior to joining BHM Dr. Forrester enjoyed an impressive 6 year career as the Executive Vice President of Customer Delivery for Health Integrated. During his time at Health Integrated Dr. Forrester is credited with the development of the first Depression Disease Management Program in the Nation to receive both NCQA and URAC accreditation. Dr. Forrester is also responsible for the design and implementation of the unique “Synthesis” product line which is designed to assist health plans in better integrating their approaches to medical management. Prior to that Dr. Forrester also held the position of President of Magellan Behavioral Health, and the Vice President of Sales for Value Behavioral Health.
BHM is very excited have Dr. Forrester join the organization, and looks forward to the benefit its customers will receive from his many years experience in behavioral and medical managed care, and disease management. “Because of his consistent ability to develop and market innovative approaches to disease management we feel that he will prove to be a great asset to both our organization and our clients,” stated Mark Rosenberg, CEO of BHM.
Upon appointment to his new position Dr. Forrester stated that “Behavioral Health Management is an up and coming consulting organization. The organization provides support to providers, integrated delivery systems, Health Plans, and others in effectively managing the delivery of behavioral health and other related services. The recent changes occurring as a result of the new Federal Mental Health Parity Act provides an even greater opportunity for improving outcomes. I am delighted to be joining the organization during this exciting period.”
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BHM Helps Provider Organization Recoup $800,000 in First 3 Months
 BHM was recently approached to work with an organization that was experiencing a number of collection related problems. These problems were leading to organization wide issues as they contributed to a significant cash flow problem. “Upon our first look at the organization we estimated that there were millions of dollars in current uncollected revenue:” said Mr. Johnson, financial expert analyst for BHM. The first step of working with this organization was to conduct a detailed analysis of multiple departments to identify areas for improvement. After working to help the organization develop and correct tracking methods BHM analysts made specific recommendations based on their findings. The analysts identified multiple areas for improvement and proposed a detailed review to complete the contact to payment revenue cycle. This review was specifically designed by the analysts to analyze systems and procedures that collect information in the key areas of: first contact, scheduling, documentation, billing, and payment. Within the first three months of working with BHM consultants, this organization recouped a total of $800,000.00 in lost revenue. These resulting improvements of the organization had the added benefit of helping them to reduce cash flow problems which they were previously experiencing. The new processes and procedures being put into place by BHM continue to ensure that billing and coding are optimized and that collections are current and correct. The organization continues to experience a dramatic increase in revenue due to the implemented changes.
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