DOI Issues Final Directives for Claims Payment Rules
The Louisiana Department of Insurance posted on their website the final Directives for implementing Emergency Rules 17 and 20, regarding payment of claims.

Emergency Rule 17 (click here)
Directive 187 (click here)

Emergency Rule 20 (click here)
Directive 189 (click here)

Please let contact the Chapter should you have any questions.

Cardiology
Referral
Service
A New Benefit from the LA-ACC 

In response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the LA-ACC has established a Cardiology Referral Service in order to better assist our members and their patients. Since the storm, we've received daily requests from patients trying to locate their physician and/or find a cardiologist in the area accepting new patients.

The Cardiology Referral Service will include an online Cardiologist Locator. Someone may search by Last Name, City, Zip Code and Sub-Specialty. This information will also be available by contacting the Chapter office.

With residents and businesses gradually returning to devastated areas, the Louisiana Chapter will continue its mission to contribute to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, to ensure optimal quality of care for individuals with such diseases, and to foster the highest professional ethical standards.

Download Form 

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New Louisiana CCA Chair Named
Last month, Denise Henry, RN, BSN, CPHQ was named the new Louisiana Cardiac Care Associate (CCA) Chair. (Note: Our previous chair, Laura Wicks, RN relocated to Kentucky after Hurricane Katrina.) As a Quality Management Cardiology Review Nurse, Denise is responsible for data collection, report analysis and process improvement projects for the cardiology projects at East Jefferson General Hospital. 

With over 20 years of cardiology experience, Denise began her career as a LPN, received her ASN from LSU Medical Center in New Orleans and a BSN from Loyola University-New Orleans.  Denise has held many positions in the cardiology arena including staff nurse in telemetry, CCU and Cardiac Rehab, and nurse manager of the CCU and remains a BLS and ACLS instructor.

Denise will represent the CCAs on the LA-ACC Council and the LA-ACC Foundation Board. Her duties include chairing the CCA/LA-ACC Education Committee and assist in the planning of the LA-ACC Annual Community Project.

Cardiac Care Associates is a category of membership for Registered Nurses, Nurse Practioners, Clinical Nurse Specialists and Physician Assistants. Visit the ACC for additional information...

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Announcments
- The LA-ACC Headquarters has re-opened in downtown New Orleans. We are happy to be back! Please let us know how we can assist our displaced members? Please contact us at 504-841-0371 or pecquet@laacc.org.

- The LA-ACC Annual Meeting has been postponed until the Spring 2006. Additional details to follow on the date and location.

- The EP Coding Course cancelled due to Hurricane Katrina, will be rescheduled. Please contact Janna if you have not received your reimbursement. All checks were mailed.

- Mark your calendars for ACC.06! The dates are March 11-14, 2006 in Atlanta. Visit the ACC web site for additional informaiton.

Payor's Emergency Policy & Procedures for Hurricane Katrina & Rita

Aetna
- Hurricane Katrina/Rita Info (click here)

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana
- Emergency info for providers (click here)
- iLink Blue (click here)
- Electronic Funds Transfer Application (click here)
- Need assistance or have questions ---
  Contact 1.800.392.4076 or send an email

Coventry
- Contact the LA-ACC office for the following forms...
     - Provider Change of Address Form 
     - Electronic Fund Transfer Application
     - Provider Quick Reference Guide
- Customer Service - 1-800-341-6613

Humana
- Hurrican Katrina/Rita Updates (click here)
- Provider Change of Address (click here)
- How to file a Humana Claim? (click here)
- Electronic Transfer Form (click here)
- Customer Service - 866-427-7478

Louisiana Medicare Service
- Provider Information (click here)
- Advanced Payment Request Form (click here)
- LA Provider Enrollment Disaster Recovery
  Emergency Update Form (click here)
- Future "ACT" Lunch & Learn Sessions (click here)
- Past "ACT" Lunch & Learn Sessions (click here)
- CERT Attestation Letter (click here)
- Disaster Related Claims (click here)
- Electronic Funds Transfer (click here)

New Web Site Aims to Locate, Assist Physicians Displaced by Hurricane Disasters
In an effort to get a clearer picture of what the health care industry of the near future may look like, Louisiana Health Care Review, Inc. (LHCR) launched a nationwide search for the state's displaced physicians. The search will be spearheaded by FindLADocs.com, a Web site where physicians can register information on their current location and contact information, their plans to return, what assistance they may need, and what may - or may not - bring them back to their Louisiana practices. We urge any displaced physician to please forward your information to this web site.

Final Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Released
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) this week released the final rule for the 2006 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. Under the rule:

- Physicians will receive a 4.4 percent payment cut effective Jan. 1, '06.

- Stark prohibitions on physicians making referrals to facilities with which they have financial relationships will be applied to nuclear medicine services, effective in 2007.

- Physicians that have financial relationships with facilities offering nuclear medicine services have until Jan. 1, 2007 to divest themselves of the relationships or discontinue referring patients. Physicians who perform the services in their own offices are not affected.

A proposed change in the practice expense methodology, which was expected to generate a mix of small gains and some significant losses within cardiovascular services, will not be implemented. The end result is that 2006 practice expense RVUs will not change much from 2005.

Stay Tuned: With the fate of physician payment in the hands of Congress, there will be several opportunities in the coming weeks for the cardiovascular community to act on this critical issue. You can stay up-to-date on this and other key issues by joining the ACC's new CardioAdvocacy Network (ACC/CAN) at www.acc.org/egrassroots.htm.