What are FQHCs?
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) in the United States are non-profit entities comprising of clinical care providers, that operate at comprehensive federal standards. The care providers in FQHC are a part of the country’s health care safety net, which is defined as a group of health centers, hospitals, and providers who are willing to provide services to the nation’s needy crowd, thus ensuring that comprehensive care is available to all, regardless of income or insurance status. FQHC is a dominant model for providing integrated primary care and public health services to low-income and underserved population. There are two types of FQHCs, one receives federal funding under Section 330 of Public Health Service Act and the other meets all requirements applicable to federally funded health centers and is supported through state and local grants. To receive federal funding, FQHCs must meet the following requirements.
- Be located in a federally designated medically underserved area (MUA) or serve medically underserved populations (MUP)
- Provide comprehensive primary care
- Adjust charges for health services on a sliding fee schedule according to patient income
- Be governed by a community board of which a majority of members are patients at the FQHC
What is Chronic Care Management?
The CMS introduced the Chronic Care Management program in 2015. It insisted care coordinators give 20 minutes of monthly non-face-to-face care management services for beneficiaries with two or more chronic conditions. It helps in managing their conditions, risk factors, medication adherence, and coordination of care with other providers. In order to claim CCM reimbursements, the practices must offer
- 24/7 access to care management services
- a platform for direct patient-practitioner communication
- ability to manage transitions between providers and settings
Chronic Care Management in FQHCs
It is not mandatory for FQHCs to furnish Chronic Care Management services for their patients. These services can be given in addition to any routine care coordination services already furnished as a part of the patient’s visit to FQHC. Though it is not mandatory for them to give CCM services, they can bill for the same if the CCM requirements are met.
The CCM billing for FQHCs is a little different though. For CCM services furnished between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2017, FQHC can bill the under the CPT code 99490. Payment is based on the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) national average non-facility payment rate for CPT code 99490. FQHC claims submitted using CPT code 99490 for services on or after January 1, 2018, will be denied.
For CCM services furnished on or after January 1, 2018, FQHCs can bill CCM services under the general care management HCPCS code, G0511. CMS has set the payment annually at the average of three national non-facility PFS payment rate for CPT codes 99490, 99487 and 99484.
It is important to note that the 2018 payment of HCPCS code G0511 is $62.28. It is high compared to the reimbursement of $42, CMS gives to practices other than FQHCs under the 99490 CPT code.
Why should FQHCs give CCM services to their patients?
- Increased reimbursements – FQHCs receive grants for treating their patients. When they provide Chronic Care Management services to their patients, they get more grants from CMS. This increases the revenue for FQHCs.
- Improved patient satisfaction – Chronic Care Management services establish a long-term connection with patients. The patients can reach out to the physicians at any time in need. This improves patient experience and the FQHC will see more patients coming into their hospital.
HealthViewX Chronic Care Management Software, the best fit for FQHCs
FQHCs are reluctant in giving CCM services to their patients as it is a laborious task. With increasing CCM requirements from CMS, FQHCs are worried about taking up the Chronic Care Management program. This is when an electronic healthcare product can come to play. HealthViewX Chronic Care Management solution has features that solve most of the problems faced by FQHCs.
- Inbuilt audio, video calling and messaging features – HealthViewX Chronic Care Management solution has inbuilt video and audio calling features. It helps in giving Chronic Care Management services to their patients. Secure messaging is also available through which the physicians and the patients can communicate.
- Automated call log feature – After a patient call, care plan creation or any action related to Chronic Care Management services, call logs are added to the patient. It reduces the physician’s manual effort is logging the call logs.
- Preventive Care plans – HealthViewX solution supports care plans for the Chronic Care Management service for a patient. The physician can create a care plan depending on the patient’s health report. It helps in monitoring the patient’s vitals.
- Chronic Care Management Analytics – Dashboards with intuitive charts and tables give complete analytics of the Chronic Care Management services. It provides a clear picture of the revenue perspective.
- Consolidated Report – The physician can generate a consolidated report of the Chronic Care Management services given for a particular period. This makes it easy for the billing practitioner for getting the Medicare reimbursements.
- HIPAA compliance – HealthViewX Chronic Care Management is HIPAA compliant. It facilitates secure data exchange. Our solution manages all patient-related documents securely.
HealthViewX Chronic Care Management solution is on par with the current requirements of the CCM program by the CMS. It helps FQHCs to set up a CCM program with the least investment. To know more about our Chronic Care Management solution, schedule a demo with us.
