Long awaited and hotly debated, the 2019 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) final rules have been on the minds of healthcare shareholders since late July, when the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released proposed rules for both. Tucked into the MPFS were the controversial revisions to the regulations governing evaluation and management (E&M) services.

For an in-depth analysis of both the MPFS and the OPPS newly released final rules, Monitor Monday has brought together a pair of industry experts for this edition of the broadcast: Duane Abbey, president of Abbey and Abbey Consultants, and Sean M. Weiss, partner and vice president of compliance for DoctorsManagement.

The broadcast rundown also will include:

• OIG Report: In a recent study, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) reported that Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAOs) overturned 75 percent of their own prior authorization and claim denials from 2014 to 2016. Healthcare attorney Knicole Emanuel, a partner in the Potomac Law Group, provides details on this latest developments.
  
  
• Risky Business: Healthcare attorney David Glaser with Fredrikson & Byron will report on another example of a potentially troublesome issue that could pose a risk to your facility.
  
  
• TPE: Targeted probe-and-educate (TPE) audits are taking place in a variety of settings, from physical therapy providers to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), including acute-care facilities. Reporting on TPE audits is Cindy Griffith, director of compliance and audits for ATI Physical Therapy.
  
  
• Monday Rounds: Ronald Hirsch, MD, vice president of R1 Physician Advisory Services, makes his Monday Rounds with another installment of his popular segment.