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| Dear Friend,
Compromised PHI.
You don’t have to have read any Hemingway or have had an uncle with a taxidermied marlin on the wall of his den to know about fishing for big ones.
And you don’t have to know very much at all to know about phishing for big ones. In fact, all you need to know about that thrilling online “sport” is encapsulated in the following story.
In accordance with its obligations under federal and state law, Orlando Family Physicians, LLC, recently announced that in April 2021, an unauthorized person, that is, a criminal, gained access to the email account of one of the practice’s employees through a phishing email. Eventually, the unauthorized access spread to a total of four employee email accounts.
Although the practice has announced that it is unaware of any misuse of the personal information about patients or other individuals, the following types of personal information were present, not necessarily all for any single person: name; demographic information; health information, including diagnoses, providers and prescriptions; health insurance information, including legacy Medicare beneficiary number derived from the individual’s Social Security number or other subscriber identification number; medical record number; patient account number; and passport number.
Several lessons can be drawn from the event:
- Although the details of the practice’s operation are unknown, the breath of information that was exposed by way of the attack is shocking. What is all of that information doing within email accounts? Where is your patients’ PHI stored, and where is it, really?
- Orlando Family Physicians discovered the breach and reacted within days. How quickly might you discover a similar breach? What processes do you have in place? What active security and privacy policies have you not only documented, but put into place? How long ago? When were they last revisited and revised?
- That shiny object dangling in front of your eyes might not be the Mercedes S-Class or that Patek Philippe you’ve always wanted. It might be a hook. Don’t open wide, unless it’s to call me to discuss how to avoid being caught with, well, to mix metaphors, your pants down.
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| | | Business Life in the Time of Coronavirus Mini-Series
The coronavirus crisis caused a short term economic crisis for many medical groups. Our mini-series shows you the way out. Plus, many of the concepts discussed are applicable during both good times and bad.
[If you haven't already seen them, follow this link to watch our entire series.] |
| | Watch Tuesday's video here, or just keep reading below for a revised, more polished transcript:
I want to talk with you today about an aspect of investment in ASCs.
It’s estimated that approximately 70% of hospital cases are outpatient cases. As technology improves and as more procedures can be done on an outpatient basis, most cases are not going to be performed in hospitals. They’re going to be moving to ASCs, freestanding imaging facilities, and other types of independent outpatient settings.
This presents huge opportunities for physicians, not only in terms of investment but in terms of making an actual win-win impact on their patients. In other words, it’s going to cost far less. And to the extent that patients are being moved into high-deductible plans, this will have an actual impact on them in addition to their carriers.
It’s been estimated that if the remaining Medicare cases that are being done in hospitals which could be moved to outpatient settings were to be so moved, there’d be a savings of $2.6 billion a year. We’re talking huge money, and that doesn’t even address the commercial side.
Let's focus on one aspect of investment in ASCs and other freestanding facility deals, covenants not to compete. Be very careful about their scope. Get advice as to whether they're enforceable. Ask yourself what kind of covenants you'd be willing to enter into, knowing that more and more cases (and varying types of cases) are moving out to ASCs and other free-standing facilities.
You don’t want to box yourself in, such that a facility equipped to permit some subset of the procedures you perform has the ability to block you from having an investment interest in another facility set up for another subset of the procedures you perform.
Or, what if the facility is under development and the plan is to be in-network, but the majority owners later decide to remain out of network? Are you stuck?
Covenants not to compete and other restrictive covenants are creatures of state law, and that’s where the analysis must begin. Check it out before you invest, even if they tell you truthfully (or untruthfully) that everyone else is signing it. |
| | How to Deploy the Secret Sauce of Opportunistic Strategy
Webinar On Demand
They say that COVID-19 has changed the world, creating the "new normal." Many of your colleagues and many hospital administrators are running scared.
Others, leaders like you, know that crisis means opportunity.
Let me provide you with the strategic tools and insights that you need in order to seize opportunities, whether they’re in the context of your current business relationships, the expansion of your business activities, or the creation of new ventures.
You will learn:
•Defense as a defective default: It’s necessary, but not sufficient.
•Exploiting weakness: Drop the guilt and identify opportunity.
•Flat line negotiation is fatal: Understand its myths and limitations.
•Negotiation reality: Learn to identify and deploy on multiple planes to affect the outcome.
•Maneuver: Harness the power of maneuver, both in overall strategy and in specific negotiation strategy.
Others see a crisis and freeze in fear. Learn how to see the opportunities and obtain the tools to increase your odds of obtaining them.
The price to attend is $479. The cost of not attending is astronomical. |
| | | Wednesday - How are Your Services Valued? - Medical Group Minute
Watch the video here, or just keep reading below for a slightly polished transcript:
It's not just the delivery of medical care that determines the value that your medical practice or group delivers. It's all of the "soft" stuff as well -- in fact, the so-called soft stuff is a larger factor than groups generally acknowledge. Very few groups reward their physicians for it.
Look at an example outside of healthcare, but one that we're all generally familiar with. You want to send a package from one place, say, Columbus, to another, say, Kansas City. Both FedEx and the Post Office will deliver the package. In fact, the Post Office will deliver it for a fraction of the price.
But FedEx will allow you to track the package all of the way, they'll get it there on time, and if there's a problem with delivery they'll contact you. On the other hand, the "tracking system" at USPS.com tells me that a package I am expecting has been sitting in a sorting facility for the last 6 days. Call their "help desk," and you find out that they are expecting a "higher call volume than usual" which will result in a longer waiting time and that all information is available on their website. Sure.
That's why FedEx can charge around 50 times more than the Post Office to deliver a letter.
The corresponding defect is the downfall of many medical groups. I've yet to work with a group that is accused of providing crummy medical care. But great medical care is simply the price of admission.
Does your group have aberrant members that are pissing off colleagues, referring physicians and hospital staff?
Is your receptionist, whether the one who actually works for you at your office-based practice, or the one at your outsourced billing service or management company, being kind and caring when answering the phone?
How easy is it for patients or referral sources or those you are doing business with to reach you? I know you're busy doing cases or seeing patients, but how quickly do you return those calls? I'm still waiting for a call back from my internist that I placed four months ago. Maybe I should say from my ex-internist.
All of this circles back on your group: To your ability to maintain relationships with facilities and referral sources. To your ability to retain employees. And, of course, to your ability to retain patients and the relationships that enable you to care for them.
Does your compensation plan take "soft" factors, not only units produced or time worked, into consideration in determining pay? If not, you're likely rewarding behavior that can lead to your business downfall. |
| | | | | Listen to the podcast here, or just keep reading for the transcript.
Cyber-attacks. The news has been filled with reports of them.
Oil pipelines.
Meat processing plants.
And, closer to home, to the healthcare industry, that is, Scripps Health and, as learned the first week of June 2021, the UF Health Central Florida cyber-attack.
How prepared are you if, despite the prophylactic precautions taken by your in-house team, taken by your outside coding and billing provider, and by your EHR vendor, your defenses are breached?
In particular, how sure are you that you’re insured, as in cyber insured, in regard to the damages caused by the attack?
In general terms, cyber insurance covers costs associated with cyber-attacks and data breaches.
As you might expect, though, the devil’s in the details when it comes to insurance coverage in general, and nowhere is this more true than in connection with cyber coverage.
Varying policies and modifications to them by way of endorsement, at varying premium levels, can be had to address cyber-attack damages. To name but a few: notification of patients/customers, regulatory defense expenses, the payment of fines, the cost of repairing computer systems and of recovering lost data, crisis management expenses, the cost of forensic investigations, and even business interruption.
It’s essential you understand that, unfortunately, relying on your insurance broker alone won’t always solve your cyber insurance preparedness. Cyber insurance dovetails with your other coverages; particular policy language, both in proposed cyber insurance policies and in your existing coverages are often interdependent. No two policies are the same and price shopping is an ineffective strategy.
Whether you’re just starting to consider coverage or want to assess what you actually have, we should talk. |
| | | Calibrate Your Compass
Read our exclusive RedPaper to guide you through this evolving situation.
The coronavirus crisis caused a short-term economic crisis for many medical groups. Our RedPaper shows you the way out. Plus, many of the concepts discussed are applicable during both good times and bad.
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| | Help Us Help You With Helpful Content
What tailored content would you most like to see during this
time? How can we focus on solutions to your most pressing strategic concerns?
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| | | | We all hear, and most of us say, that the pace of change in healthcare is quickening. That means that the pace of required decision-making is increasing, too. Unless, that is, you want to take the “default” route. That’s the one is which you let someone else make the decisions that impact you; you’re just along for the ride. Of course, playing a bit part in scripting your own future isn’t the smart route to stardom. But despite your own best intentions, perhaps it’s your medical group’s governance structure that’s holding you back.
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| In fact, it’s very likely that the problem is systemic. The Medical Group Governance Matrix introduces a simple four-quadrant diagnostic tool to help you find out. It then shows you how to use that tool to build your better, more profitable future. Get your free copy Free.
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| | | | Whenever you're ready, here are 4 ways I can help you and your business:
1. Download a copy of The Success Prescription. My book, The Success Prescription provides you with a framework for thinking about your success. Download a copy of The Success Prescription here.
2. Be a guest on “Wisdom. Applied. Podcast.” Although most of my podcasts involve me addressing an important point for your success, I’m always looking for guests who’d like to be interviewed about their personal and professional achievements and the lessons learned. Email me if you’re interested in participating.
3. Book me to speak to your group or organization. I’ve spoken at dozens of medical group, healthcare organization, university-sponsored, and private events on many topics such as The Impending Death of Hospitals, the strategic use of OIG Advisory Opinions, medical group governance, and succeeding at negotiations. For more information about a custom presentation for you, drop us a line.
4. If You’re Not Yet a Client, Engage Me to Represent You. If you’re interested in increasing your profit and managing your risk of loss, email me to connect directly. |
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