Come join us for our Second Annual MCS-P Update CRUISE
February 25, 2012 – March 3, 2012

Join Dr. Mario Fucinari and special Guest Speakers in this unique classroom setting for the Medical Compliance Specialist (MCS-P) Update course. This is an advanced course just for graduates. This course will take place on a 7-day Eastern Caribbean cruise on Carnival Cruise lines!

The NEW Patient Affordable Health Care Law went into effect on March 23, 2011. CMS and the Federal Register have released the requirements for the mandatory compliance manual and requirements necessary for a provider to treat patients in Medicare and Medicaid. Meanwhile, the OIG, CMS, BCBS and Aetna are just a few that have increased their audits. Are you ready to work audits and provide compliance manuals for our colleagues? If you are not up-to-date on the information above then you will miss the boat!

The NEW SHIP Carnival Dream will travel to the Eastern Caribbean visiting beautiful Nassau, St. Thomas and St Marten over the 7 days. The ship will depart from port Canaveral (Orlando) Florida

Price for the cruise (course fee not included) is approximately $1020.45 per person for balcony*

Reserve your cabin TODAY by contacting Stephanie at Tickets-N-Trips at 800-475-8747.

The Medical Compliance Specialist (MCS-P) Update course is a 20-hour Continuing Medical Education (CME) Approved course. The cost of the course is $850.

How to Register for the Course

1. Download the Registration Form (pdf).
2. Print and fill out the form.
3. Choose a payment type.
   • Visa or MasterCard – fill out information on registration form.
   • Check – send in by mail. Make checks payable to Dr. Mario Fucinari.
   • Paypal™ – pay directly on our website. See the PayPal™ button at the bottom of this page.
4. Submit in one of the following three ways:
   • By e-mail attachment to doc@askmario.com.
   • By fax to 217-422-4266
   • By mail to:
     Mario Fucinari DC, MCS-P
     Compliance Training
     3350 N. Water St.
     Decatur, IL 62526

Pay for the Course Online

 

Course fee only ($850), does not include cost of cruise.

This course is open to all qualified doctors and staff. Must have knowledge in coding and claim form completion.

For the last three years, this class has consistently sold out.  Seating is limited!

Register now for the Spring 2012 MCS-P Course in Decatur, IL

A MCS-P Certification Class has been scheduled for spring 2012 in Decatur, IL. The dates for the class are March 17-18 for Part 1 and April 21-22 for Part 2. The exam will be on Monday, April 23, 2011. You may register for this spring class today – see below for registration & payment instructions.

The course will be held at the DBNC Education Center in Decatur, IL at 3350 N. Water St.

A block of rooms has been reserved at a special rate of $85 for the suite. The rooms are being held at the special rate under “Medical Compliance Training” or with “Dr. Mario Fucinari” Rooms are limited and should be reserved as soon as possible. The suites available are at

Country Inn & Suites By Carlson Decatur
5150 Hickory Point Frontage Road, Decatur IL 62526
Reservations: 1-800-596-2375 US/Canada Toll-free
Telephone: (217) 872-2402

The course is a 48-hour course approved for 48 hours Category One CME in Illinois. The certification exam will be held on Monday, April 23, 2012. The following degrees will be obtained upon completion of this course:

• Certified Medical Compliance Specialist-Physician (MCS-P)
• Certificate of Chiropractic Proficiency

Cost of the course is $2,895. Get the early bird discount price of $2,745 now through February 20, 2012!
This includes the course fee and certification exam fee of $500. Price also includes course fee, books, binders, supplies and the $500 exam fee.

Sign up now! Class size is limited and will sell out!

How to Register

1. Download the Registration Form (pdf).
2. Print and fill out the form.
3. Choose a payment type.
   • Visa or MasterCard
     - fill out information on registration form.
   • Check – send in by mail. Make checks payable to Dr. Mario Fucinari.
   • Paypal™ – pay directly on our website. See the  PayPal™ button at the bottom of  this page.
4. Submit in one of the following three ways:
   • By e-mail attachment to doc@askmario.com.
   • By fax to 217-422-4266
   • By mail to:
     Mario Fucinari DC, MSC-P
     Compliance Training
     3350 N. Water St., Ste. A
     Decatur, IL 62526

Pay for the Extended MCS-P Course with PayPal™

Join Dr. Mario Fucinari and special Guest Speakers for the Medical Compliance Specialist (MCS-P) Update course. This is an advanced course just for graduates. This course will take place in our new education facility in Decatur, Illinois!

If you take an update class offered with us, the MCT Board has agreed to waive the $185 annual fee required to maintain your certification.  The class fee of $850 includes your certification dues.

This condensed three day, 20-hour event will be held Friday and Saturday, March 23 and 24, 2012 8 am – 5 pm and Sunday, 8 am to noon.  This will decrease your time away from your family and office.

The weekend will cover subjects which include E/M Coding, audit strategies, the NEW ABN form, ICD-10, EHR Meaningful Use and the NEW Blue Cross Utilization Review Software System.  Optimum Health has recently required chiropractors to have a Compliance Manual to participate in Medicare. We will teach you how! The class will be held at our new teaching facility at DBNC Education Center, 3350 North Water Street, Decatur, Illinois.

The Patient Affordable Health Care Law went into effect on March 23, 2011. CMS and the Federal Register have released the requirements for the mandatory compliance manual and requirements necessary for a provider to treat patients in Medicare and Medicaid. Meanwhile, the OIG, CMS, BCBS and Aetna are just a few that have increased their audits. Are you ready to work audits and provide compliance manuals for our colleagues?

A block of rooms has been reserved at a special rate of $85 for the suite. The rooms are being held at the special rate under “Medical Compliance Training” or with “Dr. Mario Fucinari” Rooms are limited and should be reserved as soon as possible. The suites available are at

Country Inn & Suites By Carlson Decatur
5150 Hickory Point Frontage Road, Decatur IL 62526,
Reservations: 1-800-596-2375 US/Canada Toll-free
Telephone: (217) 872-2402

How to Register for the Course

1. Download the Registration Form (pdf).
2. Print and fill out the form.
3. Choose a payment type.
   • Visa or MasterCard – fill out information on registration form.
   • Check – send in by mail. Make checks payable to Dr. Mario Fucinari.
   • Paypal™ – pay directly on our website. See the PayPal™ button at the bottom of this page.
4. Submit in one of the following three ways:
   • By e-mail attachment to doc@askmario.com.
   • By fax to 217-422-4266
   • By mail to:
     Mario Fucinari
     Compliance Training
     3350 North Water Street
     Decatur, IL 62526

Pay for the Course Online

“Thank you to all who voted. I am honored and very appreciative.” — Mario Fucinari, DC

Once the covered entities have been selected, they will be notified as to their selection. Within 30 to 90 days, the on-site inspection of the covered entities will occur. Depending on the size of the entity, the government stated that the audits may take up to three days and will examine procedures and policies within the office. After reviewing the findings of the initial 20 audits, the audit process will be analyzed for procedural changes. Afterward, the audits will continue until the remaining 130 audits are completed by December 2012. Data from the entire 150 audits will be used to guide compliance audits in the future.

During site visits, auditors will interview key personnel and observe processes and operations to help determine compliance. According to an OCR press release, “ We expect covered entities to provide the auditors their full cooperation and support and remind them of their cooperation obligations under the HIPAA Enforcement Rule.” Every covered entity and business associate is eligible for an audit.

Following the on-site visit, auditors will develop and share with the provider a draft report, which will generally describe how the audit was conducted, what the findings were and what actions the covered entity is taking in response to those findings. The covered entity will have 10 business days to review it, and will be invited to provide written comments back to the auditor. The auditor will complete a final audit report within 30 business days after the covered entity’s response and submit it to OCR. Should an audit report indicate a serious compliance issue, OCR may initiate a compliance review to address the problem. The final report submitted to OCR will incorporate the deficiencies found by the auditors, the steps the entity has taken to resolve any compliance issues and also describe any best practices discovered at the entity. Although the audit results will be “broadly shared”, OCR will not post a listing of audited entities or the findings of an individual audit which clearly identifies the audited entity.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has added a new contractor in its army of health care auditors.  The Zone Program Integrity Contractor (ZPIC) is the latest approach by CMS to audit and enforce its program guidelines.  Prior to the formation of the ZPICS, there were different entities such as the Program Safeguard Contractors (PSC), Medicare drug integrity contractors (MEDICs) and the Recovery Audit Contractors (RAC).  There was no uniformity in jurisdiction for each of these entities, therefore one entity may be overseeing a portion of Part A providers (hospitals) and another may be overseeing another portion of Part B (physician’s offices) in the same state.

To make the system more efficient, CMS has given jurisdiction to the ZPICs to oversee all Medicare claims for their appointed zones of the state.  Eventually, ZPICs will be entrusted in ensuring the integrity of all portions of Medicare.  This will include Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D Medicare.

In respect to the Comparative Billing Report, this report was sent to the top 5,000 utilizers and providers to the Medicare program.  As such, if you received a CBR, you are one of the top 5,000 chiropractors seeing Medicare patients.  Good for your practice, but not so good for looming audits.  ZPIC has used information from the CMS computer profiles to not only see who are the top providers, but also where you are skewed compared to your colleagues.

It is to your benefit to study your profile and compare yourself to others nationally, but especially in your state.  If you are too high in one area, then you may be singled out for a future audit.  When I recently called the ZPICs, I was informed that they are not using this information for audits “at this time.”  The person on the telephone was emphatic about the “this time.”  One can extrapolate that a statistically significant deviation in the numbers of 98940, 98941 and 98942 claims may be an indication of improper usage.  As such, the question of medical necessity will be a trigger for a possible audit.

Keep in mind that the CBR is for educational purposes.  I wonder if you have been educated that there is a statistical difference between you and your peers and you continue to practice in the same manner, might this indicate an intentional over utilization.  This in itself may be indicative or at least construed as fraud.

For those providers that have not received a CBR, you may still be vulnerable in your practice for an audit.  As such, it is recommended that you request a Physician Profile on yourself through the Freedom of information act.

As a Compliance consultant, I have personally seen a rise in the number of Medicare and Blue Cross audits in the last year.  Whether you are a participating provider or non-participating provider does not alter the chances of being audited.  Medicare clearly stated that the fact that you are par or non-par does not alter the likelihood of an audit.

To prevent an unforeseen audit and eventual reimbursement of funds to Medicare or another carrier, it is recommended that you become proactive in your approach to documentation, coding and compliance.  This can be accomplished through internal audits and education.

The most accurate way to assess your entire practice is for an audit or review at your office.  The Office of Inspector general has stated that a proper compliance audit and manual will not only uncover deficiencies in your practice, but will also is used as a mitigating factor in the case of fines and/or jail time.  Another alternative is to have a competent certified compliance specialist audit your charts for documentation, billing and coding checked for accuracy and compliance.

Many are frustrated by the level of audits conducted by carriers, but accountability, accuracy and efficiency are key to a practice with decreased stress.  Having a cash practice will not preclude you from audits.  Don’t forget that your documentation is also important to thwart any type of malpractice or negligence litigation.

Many opportunities are being offered to our profession by the Illinois Chiropractic Society.  For a listing of upcoming Medicare, coding and compliance classes, see our website at www.ILChiro.org

Dr. Fucinari is a Certified Medical Compliance Specialist and a Certified Insurance Consultant.  For further information on compliance audits or record reviews, please contact Dr. Fucinari at Doc@Askmario.com  Classes are now forming to become a Certified Compliance Specialist (MCS-P).  See www.AskMario.com for details.

Dr. Mario Fucinari is a full-time practitioner in Decatur, Illinois. He is a Certified Insurance Consultant, Certified Medical Compliance Specialist and a Certified Medical Compliance Instructor. Dr. Fucinari also is on Logan College of Chiropractic Faculty and Post-Graduate Faculty. For further information about compliance or audits, you may contact Dr. Fucinari at doc@askmario.com

To listen to this audio interview, download the mp3 or visit www.chiroviewpresents.org/chirochat_audio.cfm.

About Sig Miller, D.C. and ChiroChat

Chiropractic Gateway, a free online information service, assists chiropractors, chiropractic assistants, and students to successfully prepare for and to deal with challenges of every day practice, and to tap into the wellness marketplace valued in the trillions of dollars.

Chiropractic Gateway and many of our profession’s brightest minds are positioned to serve-up their most extraordinary ideas. Contributors include industry experts, leading companies and their representatives, national associations and organizations, and colleges who are provided full access all media.

Chiropractic Gateway is designed to assist chiropractors with 1) improving diagnostic acumen and patient management outcomes, 2) attracting and retaining new and established patients, 3) implementing effective practice development and management strategies, and 4) introducing effective ways to deliver the chiropractic message to the general public.

Chiropractic Gateway, using advanced technologies, includes streaming audio and video, live and recorded ChiroChat™ teleclasses, clinical case-of-the-week, research updates, surveys, forums, classified, clinical forms for download, seminar updates directing registrants for sign-up, and more. ChiroView Presents weekly e-broadcasts, received by more than 42,000 DC’s, CA’s and students, include the latest media and content.

Text above from: www.chiropracticgateway.com

Dr. Mario Fucinari has been presenting Medicare Classes for over six years and is a nationwide speaker on Medicare, Clinical Documentation and HIPAA. Dr. Fucinari also serves as the Illinois Chiropractic Society’s Medicare Committee chairman and as alternate Chiropractic representative to the Illinois Medicare Carrier Advisory Committee (CAC). In his back-to-the-basics approach, Mario whittles a difficult subject to an understandable, and interesting, comprehension of the Medicare requirements.

As an optional section in the demonstration project regions, Dr. Fucinari will add in materials pertaining to the requirements to participate in the Medicare demonstration project. The demonstration project has expanded coverage for the services that chiropractors provide for the care of neuromusculoskeletal conditions, including diagnostic and other services such as the provision of x-rays and therapy services. The demonstration project includes the entire states of Maine and New Mexico, in the Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and 17 central counties in Virginia.

“After joining you for the most recent Medicare seminar, I am once again amazed at the wealth of information that I took away from it.  Going to your seminars on a regular basis has not only made my practice more lucrative, but also has helped me to hone my clinical skills. Thanks Mario!” – R. B., DC, Chicago, IL

• Participating vs. Non-Participating Provider
• Steps to a Medicare Audit
• The Medicare Appeals Process
• “Unprocessable Claims”
• Initial Visit Documentation
• Subsequent Visit Documentation Requirements
• Coding Requirements for Medicare
• OIG Gifts and Inducements
• CMS-1500 Claim Form Requirements For Medicare
• How to Use the Coding Modifiers Properly
• What is Medicare Medical Necessity?
• Limiting Charge Guidelines
• What the new Medicare Prescription Drug Modernization and Improvement Act of 2003 means to YOU!
• Proper Use of the ABN Form