News, Events and Webinars
News
- APA honors U.S. Rep. Lowenthal for mental health leadership
Lowenthal is committed to increasing access to psychologists’ services. - CMS Adds Psychologists to the Merit-based Incentive Payment System
What psychologists need to know about Medicare’s new reimbursement program. - Winter 2019 Good Practice
This issue addresses technology in practice from artificial intelligence to telehealth to electronic health record systems and more. - New Bill Would Add Psychologists to 'Physician' Definition
The Medicare Mental Health Access Act would remove physician oversight of psychological services in Medicare. - Mental and Behavioral Health Registry: Participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System
- Progress Notes: Keeping tabs on the practice of psychology
Progress Notes is a podcast produced with practicing psychologists in mind. Episodes cover a range of topics that affect practitioners, including the financial and legal aspects of running a business.
Events
Please stay tuned for future announcements.
Webinars
Throughout the year, APA Services, Inc. hosts regular webinars on billing and reimbursement, legal issues and other topics of interest to practicing psychologists. See below for links to register for upcoming webinars or to view past programs including access to the transcripts and slides.
2019
January
- 2019 MIPS Reporting: Everything You Want to Know about Medicare, Quality Reporting, and the Mental and Behavioral Health Registry (MBHR)
Vaile Wright, PhD, and Diane Pedulla, JD, discussed CMS’s 2019 changes to the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), and introduced a new tool that will allow practitioners to track quality outcomes and report MIPS from a centralized location.
2018
January
- Billing and Reimbursement: 2018 Medicare Update
Diane Pedulla, JD, shares important changes to Medicare that went into effect Jan. 1. 2018.
February
- Getting reimbursed: Using Telehealth and the New Cognitive Functioning G Code
Antonio E. Puente, PhD, discusses the ins and outs of getting reimbursed for telehealth services and the new cognitive functioning G code.
March
- Getting Reimbursed: How to Effectively Use H&B codes
Antonio E. Puente, PhD, talks about the purpose of and how to best use H&B codes with patients who have health care conditions.
April
- Transforming Your Practice: Expanding Your Skills to Work in New Settings
Doug Tynan, PhD, ABPP, and Christopher Nettles, PhD, present about the growing movement toward integrated health care and the opportunities available for psychologists.
May
- Telepsychology & the Psychology lnterjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT)
Deborah C. Baker, JD, and Alex M. Siegel, JD, PhD, discuss the main principles of providing telepsycholgy services, and provide an overview and update on the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT).
June
- Things you don’t learn in graduate school: How to prepare for success in professional practice
Maysa Akbar, PhD, ABPP, Lynn Bufka, PhD, and Tyler Bradstreet, MS, MA, provide an overview on preparing for licensure and license mobility, the importance of billing and reimbursement rates, and common legal and regulatory issues that come up in professional practice.
July
- Getting Reimbursed: Changes coming to testing codes
Antonio Puente, PhD, Neil Pliskin, PhD, and Diane Pedulla, JD, discuss upcoming changes to the Psychological and Neuropsychological Testing Codes.
August
- Quality reporting: Measuring outcomes, reporting data, and the Mental and Behavioral Health Registry (MBHR)
Vaile Wright, PhD, and Diane Pedulla, JD, introduce a new tool that will allow practitioners to track quality outcomes and report MIPS from a centralized location.
September
- Town Hall with Jared L. Skillings, PhD, ABPP
Join us for a virtual town hall with Jared L. Skillings, PhD, ABPP, APA’s new chief of professional practice.
October
- Getting Reimbursed: Testing code changes are here.
Join Antonio Puente, PhD, and Neil Pliskin, PhD, for a follow-up session discussing the upcoming changes to the Psychological and Neuropsychological Testing Codes introduced in the July webinar. Specific codes, descriptions and practical examples will be shared.
November
- What Insurers Need to Know about the New Psychological & Neuropsychological Testing Codes
Join Antonio Puente, PhD, and Neil Pliskin, PhD, for a discussion of the upcoming changes to the Psychological and Neuropsychological Testing Codes introduced in the July webinar, as they apply to insurers.
December
- Getting Reimbursed: Continued preparation for January's testing code changes.
On Dec. 5, Antonio Puente, PhD, and Neil Pliskin, PhD, continued discussion of the upcoming changes to the Psychological and Neuropsychological Testing Codes for 2019. This webinar focused on how to document your work as well as introduce the new code values and payment structure. - Getting Reimbursed: Ask the testing code experts
On Dec. 19, Antonio Puente, PhD, and Neil Pliskin, PhD, answered questions regarding the new Psychological and Neuropsychological Testing Codes for 2019.
2017
January
- MACRA for Psychologists: How Medicare payments will change
Diane Pedulla, JD, informs psychologists about the latest changes in Medicare.
April
- We are Business People: Learning to Market Yourself as a Psychologist
Tyson D. Bailey, PsyD, presents an overview of marketing and learn how to create a profile of the personal characteristics of the individual or groups you’d like to reach.
May
- Getting reimbursed: How to successfully bill with CPT codes
Antonio Puente, PhD, and Alan Nessman, JD, discuss effective billing strategies using CPT codes.
June
- Getting reimbursed, part 2: Addressing challenges with codes, billing and insurers
Antonio Puente, PhD, and Alan Nessman, JD, cover questions on billing from psychologists who registered for the webinar or had follow-up questions to the May 8 reimbursement webinar.
July
- Practicing Telehealth: What is legal and what is not?
Deborah C. Baker, JD, and Alex M. Siegel, JD, PhD, discuss the main principles of providing telepsycholgical services, and provide an overview of the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT).
August
- MACRA for Psychologists: What’s changing about Medicare’s new Quality Payment Program
Diane Pedulla, JD, explains how MIPS reporting is changing and what these changes mean for your practice, and discusses how to begin preparing for 2019 and beyond.
September
- Geropsychology Practice: A World of Opportunity
Michael Frese, PhD, shares tips on how to run an independent psychology practice without managing an office, find steady work in nursing or assisted living facilities, discover opportunities to work as a consultant in a medical center setting, and work part-time and make a full-time income outside of a traditional office setting.
October
- Transitioning Your Psychology Practice to Primary or Specialty Health Care
Helen Coons, PhD, and Connie Galietti, JD, provide instruction on how to transition a psychology practice to health settings.
2016
August
- Getting Reimbursed for Treatment of Behavioral and Neurocognitive Disorders
Antonio E. Puente, PhD, and Lynn Bufka, PhD, cover some of the basics on getting reimbursed for behavioral and neurocognitive disorder work using the ICD-10-CM system.