LAGUNA BEACH, CA – The Healthcare Billing & Management Association (HBMA), a non-profit educational resource and advocacy group representing third-party medical billers and billing professionals, today announced details of the association’s 2010 Compliance Conference.

Taking place at Hotel Monaco in Alexandria, Va., March 9-11, HBMA’s Compliance Conference will help participants to gain deeper understanding of many issues relating to compliance within the healthcare billing industry.

Andrea L. Treese Berlin, senior counsel for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Counsel to the Inspector General, will be on hand to speak to attendees on OIG-specific compliance issues. Additional conference sessions will include discussions on such critical compliance areas as:

• HIPAA, HITECH and other federal regulations
• Billing company policies and procedures
• Effective monitoring and auditing
• Coding education and training
• Risk assessments
• Billing contracts and negotiation

“With the recent increased focus on privacy and security protection, coupled with new changes in federal legislation, the issue of compliance impacts our business now more than ever before,” said Brad Lund, executive director of HBMA. “HBMA has put together an esteemed faculty who will help participants understand why they need to invest in compliance program enhancement, and how to develop compliance plans that work effectively for their companies.”

The 2010 Compliance Conference is designed for both third-party and first-party billers. “We’re increasingly aware of the issues confronting billing companies that serve healthcare organizations, as well as the unique needs of healthcare providers who manage their own billing,” said Holly Louie, RN, CHBME, PCS, compliance officer at Practice Management, Inc. and a lead faculty member at the Compliance Conference. “For this reason, we’ve included conference sessions to address important issues from both of these perspectives.”

On Wednesday, March 10, the conference features a presentation by Attorney Mark Cunningham, titled, “How to ‘Date’ Your Client.” This session offers participants advice ranging from problem areas in client-billing company relations, to issues and recommendations for building a strong relationship with a client. A post-conference session called “Hot Topics in Compliance” will be held on Friday, March 12 and hosted by Louie; Karen Collier, Esquire; Jackie Willett, CHBME and Bob Burleigh, CHBME. This session will address major topical compliance concerns such as human resources, RAC, successful ALJ appeals, ICD-10, enforcement, coding, quality payments and several other industry topics of interest and concern to participants.

Conference registration opens at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 9, and includes a comprehensive schedule of sessions, networking lunches, informal activities like “Compliance Jeopardy,” an evening reception, and a tour of the D.C. area. Bill Finerfrock, HBMA’s legislative consultant from Capitol Associates, will present his "Washington Update" in a Wednesday, March 10 session.

About HBMA
A non-profit, member-led trade association, the Healthcare Billing & Management Association (HBMA) represents more than 30,000 employees at well over 650 third-party medical billing firms. Annually, HBMA companies submit more than 350 million initial claims on behalf of hospital-based physicians, office-based physicians and other allied healthcare providers. Founded in 1993, HBMA and its members foster personal development, advocate on the behalf of the profession, and promote cooperation through a wide range of business resources, educational events, networking opportunities, certification programs and adherence to the Medical Biller’s Code of Ethics. As the only trade association representing the interests of medical billers in Washington D.C., HBMA works with legislative stakeholders and federal agencies to improve the business of medical billing and the practice of healthcare. Learn more about how HBMA is elevating the medical billing profession at www.hbma.org.