New MSA / HSA Patient Identification Programs

Further Implications of the U.S. Patriot Act for Hospitals
By Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA, CMP™
By Hope R. Hetico; RN, MHA, CMP™ 
 
With the recent popularity and growth of health savings accounts (HSAs) and / or medical savings accounts (MSAs), compliance with the USA Patriot Act of 2002 has become an important issue for these new, hybrid [...]

Charitable Giving Terms and Definitions for Physicians

A “Need to Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writer’s
 
For most medial professional’s, charitable giving can either be a financial planning goal or an economic tool to achieve other goals more effectively.   
When charitable giving is viewed as a financial goal it becomes a very personal matter to the physician, much like an individual’s other lifestyle [...]

Using Fraud Detection Software to Review Medical Claims

MDs May be Slow HIT Adopters - CMS and Insurers are Not!
Staff Writers 
 
Did you know that Medicare and private health plans increasingly have been “mining” medical claims data for potential fraud – for some time now – and with the help of sophisticated computer technology? 
Yes, it seems true – and such IT may be needed [...]

Medical Malpractice Claim Causation Study

Physician Errors Do Play a Role — A.I.M.
Staff Writers 
 
According to a two-year old report in the Annals of Internal Medicine, physician errors are a factor in about 60% of medical malpractice claims that involved patients allegedly injured because of missed or delayed diagnoses. 
The B&WH Study 
For the study, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in [...]

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Cash Flow Terms and Budgeting Definitions

A “Need to Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writers 
 
Regardless of how much current income a physician may earn, financial resources and assets are only useful when they are converted to cash. Doctors who are in the accumulation phase of their careers can only amass new assets from free cash flow.
Free cash flow is [...]

“First Do No Harm” - A Medical Legal Imperative

Primum Non Nocere
By Dr. Jay S. Grife; JD, MA

This Latin phrase is axiomatic in intent and is one of the earliest inoculations students of medicine receive.  It dovetails the Hippocratic Oath to provide both a moral and ethical foundation for physicians in furtherance of their mission to heal the sick. It asks little in objective [...]

New Pilot Program to Audit Hospital Bills

Medicare Program Promotes Bounty-Hunter “Zeitgeist” Mentality
By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA
Publisher-in-Chief 
 
 
According to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal, hospital groups have launched a vigorous campaign against expanding a pilot program to audit Medicare claims. And, it seems the most onerous aspect of the program is a contingency fee-schedule that encourages auditors to be [...]

Inheritance “Disclaimer”

What all Physicians Should Know
By Lawrence E. Howes; CFP™
By Joel B. Javer; CFP™ 
 
In some situations, an inheritance might complicate an estate and add to the estate tax burden.  If there are sufficient assets and income to accomplish financial goals, more assets are not needed. A disclaimer may be useful to such physicians.
A Simple Definition
A disclaimer [...]

Physicians Expanding HIT Expenditures for 2008

A New Study from the Gantry Group
Staff Reporters
 
According to a new study from the Gantry Group, physicians and medical providers will be spending more money on health information technology tools and applications this year. And, their statistics suggest that healthcare providers are allocating forty percent or more of their current technology budget to clinical technology, [...]

Does Merck & Company Give Refunds?

“I Want My [Prescription-Drug] Money Back!”
By Patrick C. Cox; Jr. 
 
Merck & Company may have to as a result of a recently filed lawsuit in the state of Florida.
Coming on the heels of the disappointing Vytorin™ Enhance Trial results, patient Marion J. Greene, 72, is suing to get her money back.  She had been taking [...]

What is the Probate Process?

Estate Planning for Medical Professionals
By Lawrence E. Howes; CFP™
By Joel B. Javer; CFP™
 
The motivating issue and primary purpose of estate planning is for the physician is to assure the proper transfer of property to desired heirs with a minimum expenses and taxation [not avoidance]. The process of transferring property is called probate.
Definition and Terms
Probate, meaning [...]

About our Didatic and Educational Content

The EXECUTIVE-POST Blog for www.HealthcareFinancials.com
[Integrating health economics & medical management information] 

THE EXECUTIVE-POST’s UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS [like no other]:  
iMBA Inc., and Healthcare Financials Executive-Post is unbiased 
· Unlike most financial and managerial education providers, we are focused only on physicians, healthcare colleagues, medical executives and practices, clinics and related healthcare entities. We are unbiased and do not manage assets or [...]

A Brief Overview of Estate Planning for Physicians

A “Necessary” Process for all Medical Professionals
By Lawrence E. Howes; CFP™
By Joel B. Javer; CFP™
 
“When we hear about a colleagues’ estate, we often conjure up images of rolling green countryside, horses, sprawling mansions and established family dynasties with more money than elderly Daddy Warbucks. These images of wealth have absolutely nothing to do with today’s [...]

Senate Finance Committee to Limit Specialty Hospitals

Ban Due to Medicare Participation Prohibitions
Staff Reporters
 
A new report outlining violations of health and safety standards at some physician-owned specialty hospitals has some lawmakers renewing efforts to ban the facilities. 
The American Medical News [AMN] recently reported that Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], Office of Inspector General [OIG], investigated 109 of the country’s orthopedic, [...]

Questions Doctors Must Answer Before Retiring

Getting off the “Must-Work” Treadmill
By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, Certified Medical Planner™
Publisher-in-Chief 

“Other than facing up to the thought of never writing another prescription or studying another X-ray, perhaps the greatest challenge for a physician approaching retirement is making reliable assumptions about the future. Since the quality of life in retirement will be determined by [...]

Post-Mortem and Estate Planning Definitions for Doctors

A “Need-to-Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writers

Activities of daily living (ADLs): Those functions or activities normally associated with bodily hygiene, nutrition, elimination, rest, and ambulation. These are the minimal requirements of mobility, toileting, and dressing, eating, and maintaining continence. Performance of ADLs indicates a person’s degree of physical independence as part of a functional [...]

About iMBA Inc.

Partners for Health Economics and Financial Planning Solutions

Meet your partner in the ever-evolving healthcare industrial complex. Whatever aspect of health economics you’re in - personal or organizational - the Institute of Medical Business Advisors, Inc offers the information, education, tools and interactivity you need to help change lives for the better www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com
iMBA Inc is an [...]

National Physician Expenditures Slow

A CMS Health Economics Report
Staff Reporters 
 
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services [CMS] recently reported that while the national health spending growth rate increased slightly in 2006, the percentage rise in expenditures on physician services slowed markedly, due largely to a small Medicare pay increase and its private-sector fallout. 
Overall national health spending reached $2.1 trillion, [...]

Equity-Based Securities Terms and Definitions for Physicians

A “Need-to-Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writers 
 
ADRs (American Depository Receipts): Securities that allow trading of shares of foreign stocks on U.S. exchanges. ADRs are issued by U.S. banks in place of foreign shares that the banks hold in trust. 
Advance/decline ratio (A/D ratio): The number of stocks that have advanced divided by the number that [...]

Capitation “ReDux” - Part Two

Global Physician “Capitation” Payments Making a Comeback
Staff Reporters
 
Did you know that Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts is making a major change in the way it pays its physicians?
It’s moving from [discounted] fee-for-service payments to per-patient per-year capitation rates, adjusted for age and sickness (severity adjustments), plus a bonus for those MDs who [...]

2008: Prognostications from Healthcare Financials

SPECIAL REPORT:
A Medical “Executive-Post” Op-Ed Essay
Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™
Publisher-in-Chief
 
A new heuristic study by the Institute of Medical Business Advisors Inc [www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com] and [www.HealthcareFinancials.com] suggests that the New Year 2008 could be a big one for the healthcare industrial complex - with these dozen economic observations and postulated structural changes that could profoundly affect [...]

Split-Dollar Life Insurance Plans for Doctors

A Valuable but Complex Business Arrangement for Physicians
By Gary A. Cook; MSFS, CLU, RHU, CFP® CMP™ 
 
Split dollar arrangements can be a complicated and confusing concept for even the most experienced insurance professionals or financial advisors. 
Moreover, for most physicians and healthcare executives they seem to be fraught with even more confusion. 
The Basic Concept
This concept is, in its [...]

Mutual Fund Terms and Definitions for Physicians

A “Need-to-Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals

Staff Writers 
ADV: A two-part form filed by investment advisors who register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as required under the Investment Advisers Act. ADV Part II information must be provided to potential investors and made available to current investors.
Alpha: A measure of the amount of a portfolio’s [...]

CD-HCPs and Pharmacy Benefits

Safety and Compliance Needed
Staff Writers

A new report suggests that Consumer Directed-Health Care Plans and Pharmacy Benefits Plans [PBPs] must focus on safety and compliance.
The survey, done by the Employee Benefit Research Institute [EBRI], found that nearly 70% of those enrolled in consumer-directed health care plans (CD-HCPs) said that they considered costs when deciding to see [...]

Advisor Selection for Emerging/Suddenly Wealthy MDs

Monitoring the “Professional” Advisors
By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™
 
An emerging or non-previously wealthy doctor may never have had a reason to develop a team of “professionals” to help manage his or her personal finances and/or affiliated medical practice businesss entity. Many areas of expertise such as tax planning and medical compliance, risk and investment management, [...]

Homeowner Insurance Policy Endorsements

Home Title and Boat Insurance for Physicians
Gary A. Cook; MSFS, CLU, RHU, CFP® CMP™ 
 
The physician homeowner is well advised to consider a multitude of endorsements and/or potential increases in their insurance policy limits. 
Examples include:
· Scheduling personal property, such as jewelry, furs, golf equipment and computers, which have been exempted from coverage, or coverage has [...]

Debt-Based Securities Terms and Definitions for Physicians

A “Need-to-Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writers
 
Accrued interest: Interest that has been earned but not received; when a physician purchases a bond from a bondholder, the physician owes the bondholder interest for the period of time the bondholder held the bond. Because interest is paid semi-annually, the period of time that has elapsed is [...]

Bequest Management

Doctors Dealing with Financial Favor Requests
Staff Writers
 
Physicians who have earned wealth - or recently acquired new wealth - often receive numerous requests from family, friends, acquaintances and others for financial assistance.
These requests may take the form of requests for loans, gifts, contributions and/or “investments.” They often come at a time when the doctor is most [...]

Insurance Terms and Definitions for Physicians

A “Need-to-Know” Glossary for all Medical Professionals
Staff Writers 
 
Attained age: The premium rate charged to an insured at his or her current age on a policy conversion that would be the same as that offered by a company to new insureds who could qualify for standard rates.
Beneficiary: A person or entity named by the policyholder to [...]