Are You Providing an Annual Wellness Visit to Your Medicare Patients?

With a few extra steps your office could be increasing revenue while complying with Medicare guidelines AND showing your patients you care about their well being.

Under the Affordable Care Act, Medicare beneficiaries now receive coverage for an Annual Wellness Visit (AWV), which is a yearly office visit that focuses on preventive health. During the AWV, you will review a patient’s history and risk factors for diseases, ensure that the patient’s medication list is up to date, and provide personalized health advice and counseling. The AWV also allows you to establish or update a written personalized prevention plan. This benefit will provide an ongoing focus on prevention that can be adapted as a beneficiary’s health needs change over time. Help keep your patients as healthy as possible by encouraging them to have an AWV. Initial AWV fee schedule is $164.03 and subsequent years are $108.99.

Don’t forget. Medicare also provides coverage for the Initial Preventive Physical Examination (IPPE), commonly known as the "Welcome to Medicare" Visit, a one-time service to newly-enrolled beneficiaries. The IPPE is an introduction to Medicare and covered benefits, with a focus on health promotion and disease detection. The IPPE must be performed within the first 12 months after the beneficiary’s effective date of their Medicare Part B coverage. The fee schedule for just the IPPE is $159.08 with additional revenue opportunites if an EKG is performed.

Important Note: Medicare provides coverage of the AWV and the IPPE as Medicare Part B benefits. The beneficiary will pay nothing for the AWV and the IPPE (there is no coinsurance, copayment or Medicare Part B deductible for these benefits).

For more information go to http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Medicare-Learning-Network-MLN/MLNProducts/MLN-Publications-Items/CMS1243320.html