Knowledge Is Power

In the past I have talked about the importance of signing up for the e-mail listserv for your DME Medicare Administrative Contractor. Another important listserv is the one run by CMS.

If you have not signed up yet, you need to do so as soon as possible. CMS and the DME MACs keep you informed of important changes via this e-mail system. Consider it your direct line to Medicare. All you have to do is open your e-mail each morning to see the changes being contemplated or implemented. It is much easier to receive these updates than to visit numerous Web sites to see what has changed.

How many people in your office receive these updates? If it is only one person, then you need to re-evaluate. You should have all of your key personnel receiving these updates in order to keep everyone up to date.

Knowledge is power. Do not keep this information to yourself — share it. Make everyone responsible for reading the updates daily, and put a policy and procedure in place to implement the changes as they come in.

Many times you have several months' notice before a change goes into effect. This will let you evaluate the best way to incorporate the changes into your company.

Also, if your key staff members know of the change, they most likely will have different ideas on how best to incorporate the change and still maintain good productivity. No one better to help in the decision process than the troops in the trenches.

To sign up for the CMS coverage listserv, as well as other listservs offered by the agency, visit https://list.nih.gov.

Preparing for Disaster

One reason you want to have multiple people on the listserv is in the case of a regional or national emergency. CMS and the DME MACs will use the listserv e-mails to distribute critical information in a timely manner. The more people you have on the listserv, the better chance you have of receiving this information.

What if your office or computer is destroyed in a disaster? There are several ways to combat this. Many e-mail services are online, so you can sign on using any computer to check your account. Also, other computers in your office may not be damaged and you can use them for online e-mail. If you have offices in other locations, make sure employees there are signed up for the listserv and have a policy and procedure for getting the information from the listserv to any location that is affected by a disaster.