A bi-weekly newsletter from your physician organization
Friday, Nov. 19, 2021
Coding tips for controlling blood pressure now available
Helping patients understand the importance of controlling their blood pressure and the health impact of lowering high blood pressure are opportunities to improve a key HEDIS quality measure and patient care.

The Physician Alliance recently created a tip sheet to help accurately code for blood-pressure related care. Click to view the tip sheet, including exclusions. The adult HEDIS measures tip sheet also provides coding help on this measure (and others).

A reminder that visits with hypertension diagnosis can be any of the following:
  • Outpatient visit with or without telehealth modifier
  • telephone visits
  • online assessment

Patients must have at least two visits on different dates of service with a diagnosis of hypertension on or between Jan. 1 of the year prior to the measurement year and June 30 of the measurement year. Patient reported blood pressure readings are now acceptable if they are taken with a digital device. Codes acceptable for this visit include, but are not limited to:
  • non-acute inpatient visits
  • outpatient visits
  • telehealth visit
  • telephone visit
  • online assessment

Patient education materials related to controlling blood pressure are also available to member practices.
  • Tips for lowering & taking blood pressure pad (with patient tracking sheet) handout
  • Accurately measuring blood pressure poster (practice tips)
Upcoming education programs help kick off successful new year
Don't miss the last education programs of the year that can help make 2022 a success! Webinars are complimentary and open to TPA members only.

Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021; 12-12:30pm
How Google will impact your practice in 2022
Register now!

With the expansive growth in digital marketing platforms, building an online presence for your practice and physicians can help retain and educate current patients, attract new patients and improve reputation. This 30-minute lunchtime webinar is packed with great information that will help you understand how to:

  • leverage Google to drive in more patients
  • show up in the “Google 3-pack”
  • use simple steps to build online reputation
  • use Google as a secondary website to promote practices
  • PLUS 3 simple tasks to do in 10 minutes to keep your practice ahead of competition

Presenter: Bobby Dimovski, Founder/CEO, 4MJ Social


Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021; 12-1pm
Lunch with the Coder: CPT coding updates for 2022
Register now!

CPT coding updates start on Jan. 1, 2022. Get ready for these by attending this informative webinar! Learn the latest procedural code updates to keep your practices’ coding accurate for the new year. Attendees will learn:

  • to recognize why codes have been updated
  • how to apply the new codes
  • what should be documented to support codes (to prevent fraud)
  • tips for proper use

Presenter: Mary Mallory, CEMC, risk coding education manager, The Physician Alliance
Updates to provider delivered care management outcomes VBR
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is updating how reimbursement is issued for the provider delivered care management (PDCM) Outcomes value-based reimbursement (VBR), effective January 1, 2022.

No action is required by practitioners. This change only impacts PDCM Outcomes VBR. All other VBR are unchanged.

Provider delivered care management Outcomes VBR started Sept. 1 and will be paid as previously stated through Dec. 31, 2021. Starting Jan. 1, 2022, BCBSM will produce a claim on behalf of the PDCM Outcomes eligible providers for each attributed member. This PDCM Outcomes VBR claim will be represented by one procedure code and not spread across multiple codes like the percentage VBR. For more details on this change and a chart highlighting the amount paid per attributed member, please click here.
Covid-19 vaccine available to children
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) recently authorized the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11. The dose is 1/3 the size of the adult vaccine, and has shown to be nearly 91% effective during clinical trials.

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) stresses that vaccinating children is key to raising the level of immunity in the population and limiting the spread of Covid. Having a Covid vaccine available for children will help reduce the chance of outbreaks in school and in turn, protect students and our communities.

Parents may look to their child's physician for questions about the vaccine. These resources can help direct conversations and alleviate concerns:


This authorization of the vaccine for children now means that ages 5 and older are eligible for the Covid vaccine. Vaccine sites can be found here.
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Ways you can save
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Learn more about this partner.