So sorry I forgot to put an introduction post on both of my brand new blogs -- This Pharmaceutical Care and Daily Healthcares Blog (http://pharmcare-health.blogspot.com) and Think WisdomWise Blog (http://thinkwisdomwise.blogspot.com)
This blog will have information on important updates for Pharmaceutical Care, which may include Medication Therapy Management and other disease information and the medication procedures. Other Healthcare and Public Health issues will also be included from time to time, such as issues on Healthcare policy and Medicare.
This blog is open to anyone for discussions on certain topics. Feel free to bookmark and follow this blog! :)
Thursday, October 14, 2010
A Review of Medication Therapy Management - A Service from Pharmacist
In the past Pharmacists' role is to be called upon only when needed to prepare and dispense medication following the Doctor's prescriptions. Looking at the pharmacist's actual capability, they could largely ease the load in Primary Healthcare system. Their roles have evolved until today in the United States, Medication Therapy Management was established.
Medication therapy management (MTM) is a partnership of the pharmacist, the patient or their caregiver, and other health professionals that promotes the safe and effective use of medications and helps patients achieve the targeted outcomes from medication therapy.
MTM was first proposed by Ronald Jordan, former APhA president.
MTM in action involves the pharmacist keeping the medication profile of a patient and efficiently provide pharmaceutical care to them in various manners, such as making the right prescription, ensuring the right drug usage, and following up on the outcomes of the treatments. Good news, the United States has this program in action in various parts of the country and still growing. This is a good chance for its citizen to improve their quality of life and pharmacist efficiently use their knowledge on site.
Several MTM programs for each chronic diseases were established for the Medicare Part D, but not limited to Diabetes mellitus, Chronic Heart Failure, and Hypertension.
All this happens in the retail pharmacy and clinics. Sadly for my country Thailand, the top-lined pharmacists define MTM as going out and visit the community - checking for medication errors. It is funny going door to door and save each person from medication errors while they never prevented medication errors from the prescription source in the first place!
Do you think MTM is invaluable to the people? Do share your thoughts!
(Credits: Diagram from Healthcare Economist: http://healthcare-economist.com/2010/08/17/medication-therapy-management/)
Medication therapy management (MTM) is a partnership of the pharmacist, the patient or their caregiver, and other health professionals that promotes the safe and effective use of medications and helps patients achieve the targeted outcomes from medication therapy.
MTM was first proposed by Ronald Jordan, former APhA president.
MTM in action involves the pharmacist keeping the medication profile of a patient and efficiently provide pharmaceutical care to them in various manners, such as making the right prescription, ensuring the right drug usage, and following up on the outcomes of the treatments. Good news, the United States has this program in action in various parts of the country and still growing. This is a good chance for its citizen to improve their quality of life and pharmacist efficiently use their knowledge on site.
Several MTM programs for each chronic diseases were established for the Medicare Part D, but not limited to Diabetes mellitus, Chronic Heart Failure, and Hypertension.
All this happens in the retail pharmacy and clinics. Sadly for my country Thailand, the top-lined pharmacists define MTM as going out and visit the community - checking for medication errors. It is funny going door to door and save each person from medication errors while they never prevented medication errors from the prescription source in the first place!
Do you think MTM is invaluable to the people? Do share your thoughts!
(Credits: Diagram from Healthcare Economist: http://healthcare-economist.com/2010/08/17/medication-therapy-management/)
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Medicare Fraud - Scam Artists' Way of Making a Living
In the United States, Medicare fraud is a general term that refers to an individual or corporation that seeks to collect Medicare health care reimbursement under false pretenses. - From Wikipedia
This has cost the American taxpayers at least billions of dollars each year, lost into someone else's pocket.
If you're wondering how this happen, do read this:
(1) Phantom Billing: The medical provider bills Medicare for unnecessary procedures, or procedures that are never performed; for unnecessary medical tests or tests never performed; for unnecessary equipment; or equipment that is billed as new but is, in fact, used. In which case, every form of billing, phantom or patient, can be prevented through carefully checking.
(2) Patient Billing: A patient who is in on the scam provides his or her Medicare number in exchange for kickbacks. The provider bills Medicare for any reason and the patient is told to admit that he or she indeed received the medical treatment.
(3) Upcoding scheme and unbundling: Inflating bills by using a billing code that indicates the patient needs expensive procedures.
All of these things happen easily because originally the Medicare system was set up for honest Doctors to efficiently treat their patients but among the good ones are always a dead fish. The scam artists would do whatever it takes to grab the extra money into their own pocket. Recently in July, some of these scam artists were arrested as shown in New York Time's news. According to the news there were 8 people doing the scam and tried to earn at least $72 million. This $72 million could have been efficiently used to help the sick to survive another day.
We all should say no and give no support to all these fraudulent actions.
What do you think?
This has cost the American taxpayers at least billions of dollars each year, lost into someone else's pocket.
If you're wondering how this happen, do read this:
(1) Phantom Billing: The medical provider bills Medicare for unnecessary procedures, or procedures that are never performed; for unnecessary medical tests or tests never performed; for unnecessary equipment; or equipment that is billed as new but is, in fact, used. In which case, every form of billing, phantom or patient, can be prevented through carefully checking.
(2) Patient Billing: A patient who is in on the scam provides his or her Medicare number in exchange for kickbacks. The provider bills Medicare for any reason and the patient is told to admit that he or she indeed received the medical treatment.
(3) Upcoding scheme and unbundling: Inflating bills by using a billing code that indicates the patient needs expensive procedures.
All of these things happen easily because originally the Medicare system was set up for honest Doctors to efficiently treat their patients but among the good ones are always a dead fish. The scam artists would do whatever it takes to grab the extra money into their own pocket. Recently in July, some of these scam artists were arrested as shown in New York Time's news. According to the news there were 8 people doing the scam and tried to earn at least $72 million. This $72 million could have been efficiently used to help the sick to survive another day.
We all should say no and give no support to all these fraudulent actions.
What do you think?
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