Pharmacy Practice, Evolved
Stay informed with the latest trends, best practices, and platform updates to help your pharmacy thrive in the modern healthcare landscape.
1 Myth and 3 Truths About When to Use CPT Code 99211
Let’s clear up the confusion by debunking one common myth and revealing three important truths about CPT code 99211 that every pharmacist should know.
How is Automation Actually Used in Pharmacy and Why is it Important?
In simple terms, automation in pharmacy refers to the use of technology to carry out tasks that were previously performed manually by pharmacists and staff. The goal of pharmacy automation is to streamline routine processes, improve accuracy, and free up pharmacists to focus on patient care rather than administrative tasks.
The 6 Revenue Cycle Stages Healthcare Providers Can’t Afford to Ignore
The revenue cycle begins the moment a patient schedules an appointment. Whether they’re visiting for a routine check-up or filling a prescription, proper patient registration ensures that your healthcare facility has accurate contact and billing information. This is the cornerstone of the process, as errors at this stage can snowball and cause issues down the line.
Why Skipping Data Backup in Pharmacy Management Software Could Cost You Everything
Let’s understand why skipping data backup in pharmacy management software could cost you everything and why investing in a reliable backup solution is more critical than ever
Can Solo Pharmacists Provide Telehealth Services Without a Physical Location? Essential Credentialing Insights
Telehealth has transformed healthcare delivery, allowing patients to access care remotely. From virtual doctor visits to digital health consultations with specialists, telemedicine has become a viable option for many healthcare providers. Pharmacists are also entering this space, offering services that range from medication management to remote patient monitoring. For solo pharmacist telehealth, offering telehealth services means greater flexibility, the potential to expand their practice, and the ability to reach patients who may have difficulty accessing traditional in-person care.
Pharmacists Bridging the Healthcare Gap and Filling the Doctor Shortage
In this landscape, pharmacists are emerging as key players in filling the gaps left by the shortage of doctors. With their specialized training, broad knowledge of medications, and focus on patient care, pharmacists have the potential to improve healthcare access and patient outcomes in ways that benefit both the healthcare system and patients. But to fully realize this potential, it is essential to expand the pharmacist’s scope of practice, recognize their pharmacist provider status, and integrate them into collaborative healthcare teams.
5 Must-Run Pharmacy Reports That Could Be Costing You Big If You’re Not Using Them
Medication adherence is one of the most important factors in improving patient outcomes. When patients don’t take their medications as prescribed, it can lead to worse health conditions, higher hospital readmission rates, and ultimately higher healthcare costs. However, many pharmacies fail to track patient adherence on a consistent basis. Without these reports, you miss out on identifying gaps in care and opportunities to improve patient engagement.
How Cutting-Edge Innovation in Pharmacy is Shaping the Future of Managed Care
The role of the pharmacist is evolving. No longer just dispensers of medication, pharmacists are becoming integral members of the healthcare team. With the rapid growth of managed care, pharmacists now play a crucial role in optimizing health outcomes, improving medication adherence, and managing chronic diseases. The integration of cutting-edge innovations into pharmacy practice is not only streamlining operations but is also improving patient care in unprecedented ways.
Maximizing Claim Reimbursement: A Guide for Pharmacies
Navigating the world of pharmacy insurance reimbursement can be challenging. Pharmacies often face complex billing requirements, payer-specific rules, and frequent claim denials. To ensure that your pharmacy receives appropriate compensation for services rendered, it’s crucial to have proactive insurance reimbursement strategies in place. Without a structured approach, pharmacies can struggle to get reimbursed properly, which affects cash flow and overall financial health.
Payer Contracting vs. Credentialing: What Pharmacies Should Know
For pharmacies, payer contracting and credentialing are integral to providing services that are reimbursed by insurance companies. Both are essential parts of joining pharmacy insurance networks, but they serve different purposes and require separate steps. Understanding the differences between credentialing vs. contracting can help pharmacies navigate these processes more efficiently and avoid delays or rejections.
What Types of Clinical Documentation Does DocStation Support? Essential Info for Pharmacists
Clinical documentation is a cornerstone of modern pharmacy practice. As a pharmacist, maintaining precise and up-to-date pharmacy patient records is essential for ensuring continuity of care, supporting patient safety, and improving health outcomes. Pharmacist clinical documentation isn’t just a record-keeping task; it plays a vital role in the care plan documentation, facilitating pharmacist interventions and guiding the patient care process.
Medicare Part B Coverage for COVID and RSV Vaccines
Medicare Part B covers COVID‑19 vaccines broadly. Updated 2024–2025 formulations from Moderna, Pfizer‑BioNTech, or Novavax are covered for anyone with Medicare, including those who are older or immunocompromised.
What to Do When Your Medicare Vaccine Claim Is Denied
You start by carefully reviewing the Medicare Explanation of Benefits or remittance advice. These documents include denial codes that reveal why a vaccine claim was rejected. Every code means something specific, like eligibility lapse, missing documentation, or mismatched coding with the vaccine date, dosage, or setting.
What Does My Insurance Contract Mean? Understanding Your Billing Authority Between Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, and Commercial Populations
Effective payer contract analysis begins by identifying and thoroughly understanding the contract’s foundational elements:
State-by-State Vaccine Reimbursement: What Pharmacies Need to Know
When pharmacists across the country administer vaccines, they step into a landscape shaped not only by clinical standards but also by a patchwork of regional immunization reimbursement rules. Medicare Part B billing by region varies. Pharmacies in one state may receive a higher rate for an influenza vaccine while others lag behind. These regional billing variations matter deeply. They influence whether providers stock certain vaccines and determine their financial viability. Behind every dose lies a complex intersection of state‑specific reimbursement expectations and operational realities. Understanding how vaccine coverage and payment rates differ across geographies is no longer optional but essential for pharmacy teams.
Troubleshooting Insurance Verification: Common Issues and Solutions
Insurance verification is one of the most important front-end RCM processes in pharmacy operations. A clean claim starts with accurate eligibility checks. Without proper verification, pharmacy insurance issues quickly spiral into denied claims, delayed payments, and patient dissatisfaction. For pharmacists and staff, troubleshooting insurance verification is not just about catching errors but creating a system that anticipates problems before they appear.
Top 7 Revenue Leakage Pitfalls for Multi-Location Pharmacies
In the fast-paced world of multi-location pharmacies, revenue leakage can be a silent yet dangerous threat to profitability. While pharmacies are expected to provide essential healthcare services, many struggle with operational inefficiencies that directly impact their bottom line. The absence of proper visibility into the revenue cycle can lead to missed opportunities for reimbursement, delayed payments, and financial instability.
The ROI of Real-Time RCM Dashboards for Pharmacy Enterprises
Running a pharmacy is no easy task, and when you add multiple locations to the mix, it can get even more complicated. Managing revenue and cash flow becomes crucial as pharmacies strive to stay profitable, competitive, and efficient. In the past, pharmacies relied heavily on spreadsheets and manual processes to track finances, but this approach is no longer practical or efficient. Today, pharmacy enterprise chains are turning to real-time RCM (Revenue Cycle Management) dashboards to get an accurate, immediate view of their financial health. These dashboards provide powerful pharmacy revenue cycle management tools that enable better decision-making, proactive issue resolution, and significant cost savings.
How A Pharmacy Cut Denial Rates by 30% with RCM
Denial rates are a common challenge for pharmacies across the country. For many, dealing with denied claims can be frustrating, time-consuming, and ultimately harmful to cash flow. In an industry where timely payments are crucial, denied claims can significantly impact a pharmacy’s bottom line. But what if there was a way to not only reduce denials but also improve overall collections and cash flow? This is the success story of how one of our customers, a multi-location pharmacy, achieved exactly that. With the help of advanced pharmacy RCM automation and pharmacy software to improve collections and cash flow, our esteemed client was able to reduce their denial rates by 30%, turning their financial struggles into a success.
Billing for Flu, COVID, and RSV Vaccines: Key Differences
In recent years, pharmacies have become a central force in delivering immunizations, particularly in times of crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s no surprise that people turn to pharmacies for their accessibility, extended hours, and convenience. For many, the local pharmacy is where they go first to get their flu shots, COVID-19 vaccines, or RSV immunizations.
Navigating the Nuances of Medicare Billing for Immunizations
When it comes to providing essential vaccinations to seniors and individuals with certain health conditions, pharmacies play an essential role in ensuring that immunizations are accessible. However, billing for these services, especially under Medicare immunization billing, can be daunting due to the complex web of rules, codes, and regulations that vary across payers.
Mastering Pharmacy RCM: A Guide to Identifying Revenue Leakage & Improving Cashflow
Pharmacy RCM encompasses all the administrative and clinical functions involved in processing a pharmacy’s claims, from prescription intake through to payment receipt. It includes verifying patient eligibility, ensuring accurate medication dispensing, coding the claim correctly, submitting claims to insurance providers, and managing denied claims. At the core of pharmacy RCM is ensuring that the pharmacy is reimbursed for its services accurately and in a timely manner.
5 Signs Your Billing Software Is Causing Revenue Leakage
Inefficient pharmacy billing software can be a silent culprit behind revenue leakage, causing pharmacies to lose significant income without realizing it. Let’s explore the top signs your billing software might be causing financial loss.
How to Implement Billing Software Across Multiple Locations
One of the biggest hurdles pharmacies face when implementing new pharmacy billing software for multi-location pharmacies is the fear of disruption. Transitioning from an old system to a new one involves risks, especially when you have multiple locations to manage. Pharmacy leaders often worry about the complexities of managing the process, potential downtime, and the learning curve for staff.
The Ultimate Guide to Pharmacy Billing Software for Multi-Location Enterprises
Pharmacies that operate across multiple locations face unique challenges, especially when it comes to managing billing processes. Manual processes or disparate systems at different locations can cause delays, errors, and inefficiencies. Implementing the right pharmacy billing software for multi-location pharmacies helps streamline operations, reduce operational costs, and ensure consistency across the board.
Medical Billing for Vaccines: 132% More Revenue Per Shot
With flu season approaching and prescription margins continuing to shrink, independent and regional pharmacies are facing unprecedented pressure to find new revenue streams. DocStation’s innovative pharmacy software has just launched a revolutionary vaccine billing solution that could transform how pharmacies approach medical billing—and early results are already exceeding expectations.
Medicare Part B Billing Automation: Payer Determination & Eligibility Verification
Medicare Part B billing for pharmacy services shouldn’t feel like solving a puzzle with missing pieces. Yet for too long, pharmacy providers have struggled with the complexities of determining the right payer, validating coverage, and ensuring claims are submitted correctly the first time.
Managing Multiple Insurance Coverage: Secondary Insurance and Coordination of Benefits
Coordinating multiple insurance coverages is no longer the exception—it’s becoming the norm. With patients increasingly covered by more than one insurer, pharmacies must adjust to a billing environment that demands precision, compliance, and robust claim tracking. You face challenges like identifying the correct payer order, gathering complete coverage details, and billing within the required timeframes. Failure to manage these tasks results in denied claims, delayed payments, and unnecessary administrative costs. This complexity underscores why mastering secondary insurance billing and the pharmacy COB process is vital for long-term operational and financial health.
Managing Multiple Insurance Coverage: Secondary Insurance and Coordination of Benefits
Coordinating multiple insurance coverages is no longer the exception—it’s becoming the norm. With patients increasingly covered by more than one insurer, pharmacies must adjust to a billing environment that demands precision, compliance, and robust claim tracking. You face challenges like identifying the correct payer order, gathering complete coverage details, and billing within the required timeframes. Failure to manage these tasks results in denied claims, delayed payments, and unnecessary administrative costs. This complexity underscores why mastering secondary insurance billing and the pharmacy COB process is vital for long-term operational and financial health.
Boost Revenue by Submitting Pharmacy Vaccine Claims to Medical Benefit
Navigating the complexities of vaccine billing requires a clear understanding of the medical benefit landscape. Vaccines can be covered under either the pharmacy or medical benefit, depending on the payer and the specific vaccine. For instance, Medicare Part B covers certain vaccines like influenza and pneumococcal, while others like shingles may fall under Part D. Understanding these distinctions is crucial for accurate billing and maximizing reimbursement.
Flu Shots: Are You Billing For Both The Product and Administration To Maximize Reimbursement?
Flu shot reimbursements are more lucrative than many pharmacists realize. Each year, countless pharmacies, clinics, and health systems miss out on thousands of dollars in unclaimed revenue simply by failing to bill accurately for both the influenza vaccine product and its administration.
Flu Shots: Are You Billing For Both The Product and Administration To Maximize Reimbursement?
Flu shot reimbursements are more lucrative than many pharmacists realize. Each year, countless pharmacies, clinics, and health systems miss out on thousands of dollars in unclaimed revenue simply by failing to bill accurately for both the influenza vaccine product and its administration.
EDI Enrollment: Essential Definitions and Their Importance in Medical Billing
In today’s fast-paced healthcare environment, staying ahead of the game is crucial to ensure smooth, efficient, and compliant medical billing. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is at the heart of that process, streamlining communication between healthcare providers, insurance companies, and clearinghouses. EDI enables you to submit claims, check patient eligibility, track claim status, and receive electronic remittance advice (ERA), all of which are essential for maintaining a healthy revenue cycle. However, one thing is often overlooked: the importance of EDI enrollment before starting the billing process.
Key Telehealth Updates in the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
CMS has added several new Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes to expand telehealth services:
The SHOT Method Webinar Recap: Capturing Overlooked Vaccine Revenue
Webinar Date: May 20, 2025 Presented by: Dr. Angelina Tucker, PharmD, BCGP, CDCES & Rachael Matz, Head of Clinical Solutions, DocStation
What You Should Know: Ensuring Your Pharmacy and Staff Are Registered Appropriately to Bill Medical Claims
Billing medical claims isn’t just about submitting codes and hoping for reimbursement. It starts with registration—and if your pharmacy or staff isn’t set up correctly, you’re risking rejected claims, delayed payments, and compliance issues. Whether you’re launching medical billing for the first time or expanding services, how you register matters.
What You Should Know: Ensuring Your Pharmacy and Staff Are Registered Appropriately to Bill Medical Claims
Billing medical claims isn’t just about submitting codes and hoping for reimbursement. It starts with registration—and if your pharmacy or staff isn’t set up correctly, you’re risking rejected claims, delayed payments, and compliance issues. Whether you’re launching medical billing for the first time or expanding services, how you register matters.
Fixing Pharmacy Vaccine Billing: How to Streamline Claims, Verify Coverage, and Improve Reimbursement
Why Outdated Billing Systems Are Holding Pharmacies Back—and What You Can Do to Maximize Revenue and Simplify Immunization Services
The 7 Revenue Cycle Stages Healthcare Providers Can’t Afford to Ignore
In the heart of a bustling clinic, you notice that despite a steady stream of patients, the financial health of your practice isn’t reflecting the hard work you put in daily. Delayed reimbursements and frequent claim denials have become all too common, threatening the quality of care you strive to provide. This scenario underscores a critical aspect of healthcare operations: mastering the healthcare revenue cycle is essential for financial stability and also for delivering uninterrupted patient care.
Expanding Clinical Services in Community Pharmacies: Overcoming Barriers in 2025
Community pharmacies have long been a cornerstone of the healthcare system, providing essential services like dispensing medications and offering over-the-counter products. However, as the landscape of healthcare evolves, there is a significant opportunity for pharmacies to expand their clinical services and enhance their role in patient care. By leveraging their accessibility and expertise, pharmacies can be pivotal in managing chronic conditions, offering preventive care, and supporting patient wellness. This transformation is not without its challenges, but with the right strategies in place, community pharmacies can overcome these barriers and seize the opportunity to expand their clinical services.
Credentialing Success: How Pharmacists Can Streamline the Insurance Verification Process
Credentialing is an essential part of the healthcare system, allowing providers, including pharmacists, to be recognized as eligible participants for reimbursement from health insurance plans. Pharmacists’ involvement in patient care, especially in medication therapy management (MTM) and chronic disease management, has grown significantly in recent years. As such, understanding the provider credentialing process is critical for ensuring reimbursement, access to patients, and continued professional growth. In this article, we will delve into what pharmacist provider credentialing is, why it’s essential, and how it varies depending on the type of payer, including Medicare and commercial insurances. Additionally, we will explore the difference between credentialing and contracting, as well as the role of third-party services in simplifying the process.
Automation in Patient Care: How It Can Support Efficiency and Revenue Growth
Healthcare providers often struggle with administrative bottlenecks, compliance complexities, and ever-rising operational costs. At the same time, they are under pressure to provide an elevated level of patient care and maintain fiscal well-being. This is precisely where automation becomes a catalyst for ongoing improvement, reducing errors, enhancing patient experiences, and boosting revenue cycles.
A Guide for Pharmacists to Transform Patient Touchpoints into Billable Encounters
In the evolving landscape of healthcare, community pharmacies are uniquely positioned to enhance patient care by integrating clinical services into routine operations. By transforming everyday patient touchpoints into billable encounters, pharmacies can improve health outcomes and secure additional revenue streams. This comprehensive guide provides a roadmap for pharmacies aiming to make this pivotal transition to billing for clinical services.
A Guide for Pharmacists to Transform Patient Touchpoints into Billable Encounters
In the evolving landscape of healthcare, community pharmacies are uniquely positioned to enhance patient care by integrating clinical services into routine operations. By transforming everyday patient touchpoints into billable encounters, pharmacies can improve health outcomes and secure additional revenue streams. This comprehensive guide provides a roadmap for pharmacies aiming to make this pivotal transition to billing for clinical services.
Demystifying Pharmacy Revenue Cycle Management: From a 20-Year Revenue Cycle Nerd
After spending two decades knee-deep in healthcare revenue cycles (yes, I proudly call myself a revenue cycle nerd!), I’ve learned that the difference between a thriving pharmacy clinic and one struggling to keep its doors open often comes down to one thing: how well they manage their revenue cycle. Whether I’m taking a break from hiking with my family or stepping away from playtime with my five grandchildren, I’m often reflecting on how to make RCM more accessible to those just starting in this field.
DocStation AI Payer Prediction: Automating Medical Claim Submissions with 90% Accuracy
Healthcare billing can be a complex maze of decisions and verifications that consume valuable time better spent on patient care. The DocStation AI™ Payer Prediction Model is transforming this landscape by streamlining the medical claim submission process with remarkable accuracy and efficiency.
Preventing Claim Rejections: Best Practices for Clean Claims
Imagine you run a healthcare practice where your team submits dozens of claims for reimbursement one day. A week later, you noticed that a large number of those claims were denied. The reasons vary—one claim has an incorrect CPT code, another is missing a required modifier, and one patient’s insurance was inactive on the date of service.
Transform Your Pharmacy Revenue with DME Billing: A Success Story
*Note: This guide uses the fictional story of Mae Whelan and Whelan’s Pharmacy to illustrate the real opportunities and challenges in DME billing. While Mae’s story is fictional, it represents the actual experiences of many independent pharmacies implementing DME programs.*
![Webinar Recap] Pharmacy Revenue Mastery: Proven Billing Strategies from 2024 Top-Performing Pharmacies](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/076lcf0r/production/f82b95a4fe7b4c8d2e2c545da52efd80ad8bcf0b-1408x768.png?rect=128,0,1152,768&w=600&h=400)
Webinar Recap] Pharmacy Revenue Mastery: Proven Billing Strategies from 2024 Top-Performing Pharmacies
Did you miss our free webinar, “Driving Revenue Through Immunizations?” No worries! You can now watch the recording on YouTube or reference the PDF of the presentation here.
Managing Multiple Insurance Coverage: Secondary Insurance and Coordination of Benefits
The complexity of handling multiple medical insurance claims demands a systematic approach to ensure accurate processing, timely reimbursements, and compliance. Secondary insurance billing and coordination of benefits (COB) are integral to managing these claims efficiently, ensuring patients receive maximum coverage while pharmacies maintain financial stability.
Managing Multiple Insurance Coverage: Secondary Insurance and Coordination of Benefits
The complexity of handling multiple medical insurance claims demands a systematic approach to ensure accurate processing, timely reimbursements, and compliance. Secondary insurance billing and coordination of benefits (COB) are integral to managing these claims efficiently, ensuring patients receive maximum coverage while pharmacies maintain financial stability.
Understanding and Resolving Claim Remit Codes
Claim remittance advice codes—commonly referred to as CARCs (Claim Adjustment Reason Codes) and RARCs (Remittance Advice Remark Codes)—are an essential part of the healthcare billing landscape. These codes provide critical insights into why a healthcare claim has been adjusted, denied, or paid differently than expected.
Pharmacy Claim Adjudication Basics: Understanding BIN, PCN, and Rejection Codes
It’s a busy Monday morning at a neighborhood pharmacy. Jane, the pharmacist, greets her first customer of the day, Mr. Roberts, who needs his prescription refilled. As she processes his insurance card, Jane notices a rejection: “Invalid BIN/PCN.” Knowing how to decipher these codes is crucial to ensure Mr. Roberts receives his medication without delays.
Best Practices for Pharmacies to Streamline Prior Authorization
Prior authorization (PA) is a gatekeeping process used by payers to ensure the appropriateness of prescribed treatments or medications. Although essential, it creates administrative hurdles that often delay care and increase the workload for pharmacies. Pharmacies need solutions that streamline the PA process while ensuring compliance, efficiency, and timely patient care.
When to Use CPT Code 99211 – 1 Myth and 3 Truths
A patient with diabetes visits a neighborhood pharmacy for a quick follow-up, seeking advice on managing blood sugar levels. The pharmacist evaluates the patient’s glucose log, discusses minor dietary adjustments, and reinforces the importance of medication adherence. Though brief, this interaction reflects meaningful clinical care. The question arises—can this encounter be billed under CPT code 99211?
The 5 Most Frustrating Pharmacy Software Issues (and How to Fix Them!)
Pharmacy operations have become increasingly complex as patient expectations rise and regulatory demands grow. Unfortunately, many pharmacies still rely on outdated software systems, creating obstacles that affect efficiency, compliance, and patient satisfaction. Among the most pressing challenges is the problem of medical insurance claim processing issues. This not only impacts pharmacy revenue but also disrupts patient trust and care delivery.
Prepare Your Pharmacy for 2025 with Credentialing and Enrollment
Today, pharmacies are moving beyond traditional roles to provide a range of clinical services that significantly improve patient care. These services—from immunizations to chronic disease management—benefit patients and create new revenue streams for pharmacies. As pharmacies gear up for an evolving healthcare landscape in 2025, establishing a solid foundation for credentialing and enrollment is key to staying competitive.
Healthier Patients, Healthier Profits: A Pharmacist’s Guide to Success by Streamlining Vaccine Billing and Administration
Navigating the intricacies of vaccine billing can be intimidating, primarily due to the varying ways vaccines are covered by insurance.
Revolutionizing Pharmacy Regulatory Compliance with Modern Software
Pharmacies must navigate a maze of regulations from bodies like the FDA, DEA, State Boards of Pharmacy, and CMS. These regulations cover a wide range of areas:
Simplifying Medicare: The Distinction Between Medicare’s Offerings for Medications and Pharmaceutical Care
Few medical professionals wear more hats than a pharmacist.
Medicare Part C vs Part D: A Pharmacist’s Guide to Helping Patients Navigate Coverage Options
Navigating the nuances of Medicare can be a challenge for anyone in the medical profession.
Webinar Recap: Maximizing Flu Shot Revenue with DocStation and ReNue Apothecary
Did you miss our free webinar, “Driving Revenue Through Immunizations?” No worries! You can now watch the recording on YouTube or reference the PDF below.
C vs D? How Pharmacists Can Optimize Medicare Part C vs D for Their Patients and Profits
Twenty years after Harry Truman spoke these words about the necessity of national healthcare, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law Medicare legislation, a historic moment intended to transform American healthcare for the better, forever.
Medicare Made Easy: A Breakdown of Medicare Part A vs B vs C vs D for Pharmacists
In the medical field, there are few sayings that are more true than this one.
From Frustration to Freedom: 3 Ways Pharmacy Management Software Can Revolutionize Your Medicare Part C and D Billing
It’s a wild world out there for pharmacists these days. From ever-changing formulary lists and frustrated patients, to staying updated with the latest regulations, keeping your head above water can often feel like a constant battle.
Q&A with DocStation CEO: How are pharmacies integrating automations into their workflows?
At the forefront of healthcare innovation, the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation in pharmacy operations is still just budding, yet it’s poised to redefine the way we manage and deliver care. As someone deeply embedded in the tech side of healthcare, I see a world of opportunity—but it’s crucial that we navigate it wisely.
Services to Implement in Your Primary Care Pharmacy
Estimates say that there will be a shortage of 17,800 to 48,000 primary care physicians in the United States by 2034, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).1
Clinical Pharmacy vs. Staff Pharmacy: Navigating the Differences
In the dynamic world of healthcare, the distinction between clinical and staff pharmacy roles emerges as a critical factor in navigating for better patient outcomes. Just as understanding the intricacies of HCPCS and CPT codes is vital for pharmacies to ensure proper billing and service provision, recognizing the differences between clinical and staff pharmacies is key to optimizing healthcare services and patient care.
Key Differences Between HCPCS vs CPT for Pharmacies
Pharmacies are the unsung heroes in healthcare, right? They provide essential services for the community, from safely filling prescriptions to giving health advice. To get the billing right for these services, pharmacists need to be on the ball with their accuracy. That’s where medical billing codes come into play, and two types you’ll see a lot are HCPCS and CPT codes.
How to Start a Medication Synchronization Program
Your pharmacy loses money every time a person forgets or is unable to fill their prescriptions for chronic disease medications. Not only that, but it can also affect your patient’s well-being.
Pharmacy Quality Improvement Initiatives To Implement in 2024
Medication errors, adverse drug reactions, and non-adherence all pose significant threats to patient well-being. So, quality improvement initiatives (QI) represent a strategic and necessary commitment to advancing the safety of healthcare services.
Unlocking the Benefits of A Personal Medication Record: A Comprehensive Guide
In today’s healthcare landscape, juggling multiple providers and medications has become the norm. A Personal Medication Record (PMR) emerges as a crucial tool in this complexity, offering a streamlined way for patients to keep their medication regimens in check.
Elevating Revenue Cycle Management: A Milestone Hire for DocStation
DocStation stands at the forefront of healthcare technology, committed to connecting pharmacists and payers to enhance patient outcomes. As we navigate the complexities of the $3 trillion healthcare industry, we’re excited to share a strategic development that promises to significantly bolster our operational capabilities.
Optimizing Your Pharmacy: A Guide to Pharmacy Management Systems
All pharmacies benefit from tools that improve efficiency. A pharmacy management system (PMS) is the best helping hand to support your operations as they grow. With useful features like inventory management, health records, and automated reimbursements, you can improve your team’s efficiency, increase revenue, and enhance patient care with pharmacy software systems.
How to Choose the Right EHR Vendor for Your Pharmacy
Forget overflowing file cabinets and mountains of paperwork. The future of pharmacy is digital, and adopting an Electronic Health Records (EHR) system is key to that transition. Implementing an EHR isn’t just about replacing paper with pixels. It’s a strategic decision that impacts your entire pharmacy ecosystem. From boosting efficiency to enhancing patient interactions, the right EHR can be a game-changer.
Advancing Pharmacy Operations with Healthcare Document Management Software
In the evolving landscape of pharmacy operations, the integration of healthcare document management software is becoming increasingly crucial. This sophisticated technology streamlines how pharmacists manage, store, and retrieve vital healthcare documents, enhancing efficiency and patient care. Let’s explore the transformative impact of this software in the world of pharmacy.
The Pharmacist’s Guide to Diabetes Awareness Month
November is a special month for all of us. The autumn leaves are at their peak, but more importantly, it is National Diabetes Awareness Month. As pharmacists, our role is vital in the lives of diabetes patients. This observance provides us with a unique opportunity to make a significant impact on their health and well-being. In this guide, we will delve into the significance of Diabetes Awareness Month, explore the associated symbols and color for diabetes, and discuss how pharmacists can best serve their diabetes patients during this crucial time.
DocStation: The Best Mobile MediClaim Software Alternative
Pharmacy billing processes can be complicated and time-consuming thanks to complex billing codes, manual entry errors, authorization issues, adjudication delays, and more. These factors cause headaches that steal valuable time from patient care. That’s why savvy pharmacies invest in software to streamline the process.
Exporting Patient Lists from DocStation
In today’s fast-paced pharmacy environment, efficiency is key. Pharmacists need tools that can streamline their workflow and save valuable time. DocStation understands this need and has introduced a new feature that allows users to export a list of patients effortlessly! In this blog post, we will guide you through the process of exporting patient lists from DocStation and explain how you can apply filters to generate customized reports, all in just a few simple steps.
Streamlining Flu Season Billing with AI Technology: Introducing DocStation’s Auto-Billing
Flu season is upon us, and for pharmacists, this means a surge in vaccine administrations and billing tasks. Manual billing for vaccine claims can be a cumbersome and time-consuming process, leaving pharmacists with little time for other crucial activities. But what if there was a smarter way to manage your pharmacy’s billing process? Enter DocStation’s Auto-Billing technology, a revolutionary solution that harnesses the power of AI to streamline billing during flu season and beyond.
Introducing BIN Billing
In the ever-evolving landscape of healthcare, efficiency and precision are paramount. Pharmacists, as frontline healthcare providers, are constantly seeking ways to streamline their processes and enhance patient care. Enter DocStation’s BIN billing – the latest game-changing feature that allows pharmacies to submit claims directly from their dispensing system for automated medical billing. But what exactly is BIN billing, and why should it matter to you? Let’s dive into the details.
Improving the Future of Patient-Centered Care | DocStation
In today’s dynamic healthcare landscape, the role of pharmacies in delivering patient-centered care has never been more important. The marketplace has a growing number of direct-to-consumer options as individuals increasingly seek comprehensive and personalized healthcare experiences. Pharmacies stand at the intersection of medical expertise and community accessibility that poises them to capitalize on consumer needs and wants.
2023 Provider Status Legislation Updates
Passed HB 1007 which expands RPh’s authority to prescribe HIV PrEP/PEP via a statewide protocol.
DocStation’s Product Changelog and Release Notes
Welcome to DocStation’s Product Changelog and Release Notes! This document is regularly updated to showcase both minor and major platform and product updates. Where applicable, help articles, demo videos and screen recordings will be linked for further information.
The Future of AI: Pharmacy Applications & Workflows
In today’s increasingly digital world, artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative force, revolutionizing industries and reshaping the way we work.
The DIR Double Whammy: What Pharmacies Need to Know to Stay Afloat
Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are the malevolent puppeteers in the complex ecosystem of the pharmacy world. These entities, known for their opaque pricing models and damaging reimbursement policies, have mercilessly crushed pharmacies with their practices, leading to such abysmal reimbursement rates that many pharmacies have either had to close their doors or seek revenue outside of dispensing revenue tied to PBMs.
Top Benefits and Challenges in Medication Therapy Management
Medication therapy management (MTM) is a program that can help ensure patients receive the most appropriate medications and allows pharmacists to efficiently monitor a patient’s progress and optimize health outcomes. Learn more about how MTM can improve patient outcomes while making medication management easier for providers.
What is CLIA Certification and Why Does it Matter?
Across various social media channels and message boards, pharmacy owners are discussing expanding their testing services. Have you started the process of offering approved lab tests at your pharmacy? Are you digging through research to determine if it’s a good idea for your pharmacy’s business model? Wherever you are in the process of implementing testing services, there’s one acronym you will keep coming across, CLIA. We have done the heavy lifting on this topic so you can make an informed decision in determining if and how to launch testing services in your pharmacy.
Unleashing our Magic: A Q&A with DocStation’s Marketing Director on the new brand
We are moving into the next phase of growth here at DocStation and really wanted that growth to be reflected in the brand image and messaging. Our mission is to be a champion for pharmacies and to get pharmacies paid for healthcare services but that vision was a little lost in our old image. I think that distinct vision comes across more clearly with this refresh.
EMR vs EHR for Pharmacies, Explained
EMR and EHR medical abbreviations are often used interchangeably. However, there are some key differences that are especially important for those working in a pharmacy setting. In this quick guide, we’ll define EHR and EMR medical abbreviations thoroughly to help you understand the differences, and delve into the details of which can benefit your pharmacy most.
Pharmacist Medical Credentialing & Enrollment
Over the past decade, numerous states have passed legislation paving the way for pharmacists to achieve provider status. This pivotal healthcare policy shift recognizes pharmacists’ expanding role beyond medication dispensing. These laws, while varying by state, generally aim to achieve two primary objectives: to include pharmacists in health insurance provider networks and to enable reimbursement for services that fall within their extensive scope of practice. The journey to recognized provider status is not merely a bureaucratic formality; it signifies a fundamental elevation of the pharmacy profession, empowering pharmacists to extend critical healthcare services to millions of Americans who might otherwise face barriers to access.
The Future of Monkeypox and How To Prepare
Despite the fall in reported cases of Monkeypox (now transitioning to being called Mpox1) since the peak in August 2022, people all over the country have found themselves asking: “what is this disease and is there a monkeypox vaccine?” Unfortunately, in-depth patient and community member knowledge and understanding of monkeypox and smallpox vaccines is limited. So, pharmacists, drug manufacturers, and other providers are often the ones left filling in the gaps.
The Pharmacist’s Guide to Patient Engagement Strategies
Pharmacy owners are passionate about their community’s health and quality of life. However, wellness is a two-sided effort, with significant responsibility resting on how invested patients are in improving their own well-being and lifestyle. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that increased patient engagement leads to better outcomes. So, what patient engagement strategies should pharmacy professionals utilize in 2023 to facilitate a higher degree of involvement?
HIPAA-Compliant Texting for Medical Professionals
In today’s modern world, it feels like new messaging apps are emerging almost daily. But it is very difficult to find an app that genuinely offers HIPAA-compliant communication that you can trust using with your patients.
How to use the new fast finder inside DocStation to perform actions with zero clicks
The new DocStation Command Center is a game-changing navigation tool that will allow users to move throughout the platform, create and update records, search for and verify patient and claims information, and even ask for help — all without leaving the keyboard. This new feature is available for all users, regardless of subscription!
How to Leverage an Assessments Tool in Your Clinical Workflow
Standard screening and evaluation tools such as mental health assessments and test & treat screenings can ensure that pharmacists remember all information to gather and provide a consistent patient experience.
How to Manage Healthcare Burnout in Your Pharmacy
It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic strained hospitals, pharmacies, and clinics to their breaking point — and the healthcare workers that operate them.
Pharmacy CPT Codes Explained
Whether you’re a pharmacy owner or a practitioner, there’s no doubt that operating a pharmacy can be challenging in today’s market. Aside from declining reimbursement, PBM shenanigans, and controlling costs, ensuring a steady cash flow can be difficult. If your pharmacy bills to patients’ medical benefit, a big part of that difficulty lies in billing and all the processes that follow. As with many industries, getting paid or reimbursed for services and the steps to follow up can take up valuable time and resources.
SMS Messaging feature pairs with Open Scheduling to streamline clinical pharmacy workflow
A secure SMS patient messaging feature pairs perfectly with Open Scheduling to enhance pharmacy website functionality, reduce phone calls, and streamline clinical pharmacy workflow. Get started today.
Medical Benefit vs. Pharmacy Benefit: An In-Depth Look
Almost fifty-five years ago in the world of health insurance, a split occurred between the medical benefit and pharmacy benefit. Claims processing for pharmaceuticals had grown to a volume that required a unique solution for insurers. New companies and subsidiaries were created to meet this growing demand, and unique pharmacy billing practices arose from them. US pharmaceutical sales reached approximately $555 Billion in 2021, the vast majority of which were processed through insurance governed by the pharmacy benefit instead of the medical benefit. As states continue to pass provider status legislation, the majority of covered clinical services would be covered by the medical benefit.
Check out DocStation’s Comprehensive “Minnesota Pharmacy Billing Guide”
Billing for pharmacy services in Minnesota just got a lot easier!
The Future of Pharmacy: How Technology Will Impact the Industry
The pharmacy profession is rapidly shifting. The pharmacist of yesterday was regarded as an individual who simply dispensed prescribed medications and counseled patients on those medicines. This work has been compensated at a dwindling rate. With swift advances in technology, the pharmacist of tomorrow is moving toward a more involved clinical role.
Meet Your Provider Status SWAT Team
The DocStation Customer Success team is your partner in implementing DocStation’s software platform to drive new revenue opportunities for your pharmacy. From CPT codes, credentialing & enrollment, to rejected claims processing, this team has the expertise and follow through to help you navigate the process easily!
Pharmacists Can Prescribe Hormonal Contraceptives in 20 U.S. States
As of March 2022, Pharmacists can directly prescribe and dispense hormonal contraceptives without a CPA (collaborative practice agreement) in 20 states (including the District of Columbia).
DocStation Teams up with Devoted Health to Close Gaps in Care
Greetings from all of us here at DocStation. We are excited to tell you about our innovative new value based care pharmacy program we are running in partnership with Devoted Health. We’re engaging pharmacists embedded within members’ communities to collaborate with primary care and specialist providers as a value based care team to promote preventative health and close gaps in care.
DIR Fees: How They Affect Drug Prices & Pharmacies
For pharmacies, it’s becoming more challenging to provide optimal healthcare to their patients and offer drugs at reasonable costs. One of the primary reasons is that reimbursements and fees from insurance plans, particularly Medicare Part D plans, can be confusing, vague, and unclear. Understanding how fees are assessed usurps a pharmacist’s valuable time. One such fee that causes uncertainty for pharmacies is a direct pharmacy fee called “DIR.”
What Does PDC Stand for in Pharmacy & How Do You Measure It?
Medication adherence plays an important role in the practice of pharmacy and is affected by various factors.
The Future of Pharmacy is Value-Based, Part Two
Earlier this week, I published a guest post on the Pharmacy Quality Alliance blog discussing the gaps in the pharmacy delivery system and the opportunities that the value-based care models present.
DocStation Partners with ONE Rx To Combat Opioid Misuse in North Dakota
AUSTIN, Texas — DocStation, a patient care management platform for pharmacists, is partnered with the ONE Rx Project as its exclusive software provider.
DocStation Raises $3.1M To Make Pharmacists Front-Line Providers
AUSTIN, Texas — DocStation, a software company that works with health plans to mobilize pharmacists as front-line care providers, has raised a $3.1 million seed round.
Meet Jeff!
Jeff is always learning, always evolving. He has been an actuary, a software engineer, a data engineer and has dabbled in creative pursuits such as songwriting and acting. Now he is combining those skills to reach his next evolution: a machine learning expert. Requiring equal parts of logic and creativity, machine learning has become a newfound passion and his prior roles have served as a natural progression to bring him to this cutting edge technology. From entering AI contests to pursuing a graduate degree in the field, Jeff is going all in. He’s competitive, hard working and always looking for new and interesting experiences to challenge himself.
DocStation achieves Level 2 capability for Pharmacist eCare Plan
AUSTIN, Texas. June 17, 2020 — DocStation, a patient care platform that partners with health plans to enable pharmacists to provide value-based care, has achieved Level 2 capability from Community Pharmacy Enhanced Services Network (CPESN) for the Pharmacist eCare Plan Initiative.
Wait — Can Pharmacists Bill for the Coronavirus Test?
On Wednesday, April 8th 2020, the Department for Health and Human Services issued guidance authorizing licensed pharmacists to order and administer COVID-19 tests.
Meet Simon!
Simon is a delight. He’s one of those people you want to work with. He’s also one of those handy people who likes to fix things. A tinkerer, through and through, Simon is always down for taking things apart, learning with his hands, and then putting them back together even better than before.
Meet French!
John French, or “French” as we call him, likes to make things. At DocStation, he makes software, and outside of work he’s building his own software projects. He also makes music — playing bass in threedifferent bands. On top of all that, French is usually tinkering away on one or several other random projects (like building lighting setups for shows) at any given moment. With all of this making and tinkering, French’s mind is uniquely adept at blending the analytical with the creative — making him a great programmer and a wonderfully interesting guy to be around.
Meet Chris!
A nature lover and philosopher turned software engineer, Chris has always been thoughtful in life and in work. His quiet and low-key demeanor may lead you to believe that he’s not much of a risk-taker. Learning more about him, though, you find out there’s an exciting explorer beneath the surface that has steered him towards his path in life.
Meet Aubree!
You’ve likely already met the lovely Aubree. She’s the face of DocStation for our pharmacy customers. She’s making sure things run smoothly and answering all your questions along the way.
Meet Josh!
He wants to make something he’s proud of — and eat all of your M&M’s.
Meet John!
John makes sense. Always. His powerful grasp on logic not only makes him a self-proclaimed math nerd, but also someone who can make all sorts of decisions rationally — using frameworks to guide him so that he’s not misled by a bit of outlier data. You may assume that someone as firmly planted in reasoning as John would seem somewhat cold or distant. But nope. He’s as warm and charming as he is logical. And we see that sort of balance in all aspects of his life. His life is one big balanced equation.
Front-Line Pharmacists
Coronavirus continues to sweep across our nation. Those of us that live in population dense areas are feeling impact on our day-to-day lives while rural America fears what may come. Experts warn of multiple waves of infection before herd immunity is achieved. A vaccine may take a year to develop.
Staying sane while working remotely, tips from a Healthcare company
This guide is adapted from an internal document we created at DocStation to help our employees work remotely (new and experienced alike). We’re fortunate that, as a 100% remote company, we’ve had a lot of practice at it. In light of many people joining the new WFH world, we’ve decided to publish it for everyone.
Meet Samm!
It takes a certain boldness to approach big problems — to be one person and look at a giant industry affecting millions of lives (say… like the American healthcare system, for instance), and think, “Yeah, I have an idea to make that better,” and then* actually do something about it.*
What the New CMS Proposed Rule Means for MTM Programs in 2021
https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/contract-year-2021-and-2022-medicare-advantage-and-part-d-proposed-rule-cms-4190-p-1
*The *freeCare Plan for Pharmacists
In June 2020, DocStation released a free version of the Pharmacist eCare Plan. This article talks about why we chose to do that and how we plan to help pharmacists do more for patients.
The Pharmacist eCare Plan
Breakthroughs in modern medicine have paved the way for antiviral drugs that could help prevent HIV; Researchers have identified methods to grow entire body parts from stem cells; Real-time language translation has been achieved by coupling voice recognition technology with artificial intelligence. These great innovations are changing the world as we know it, all while the healthcare technology industry is simply trying to figure out how to take patient information from one system and transfer it to another.
Leveraging Technology for Value-Based Pharmacy Models
ASHP is a proud partner of U.S. National Health IT Week. This week, members of the ASHP Section of Pharmacy Informatics & Technology are sharing our stories within our organizations and beyond to showcase the role of pharmacy informatics professionals have on our patients.
DocStation’s Tour de Pharmacies 2018
We spent the second week of October trekking across Iowa to spend time with some of the most innovative pharmacy leaders in the country.
DocStation’s Tour de Pharmacies 2018
We’re headed to Iowa/Nebraska for a whirlwind tour that we’re dubbing DocStation’s Tour de Pharmacies 2018. We’re planning visits to some of the most innovative pharmacies in the country who are running cutting edge clinical practices. Our goal is to observe, listen, and take what we learn back to our team in Austin. We love getting in the trenches to build the best product for our pharmacists and their patients.
The Applications of Blockchain Technology in Healthcare
Pharmacists worldwide are increasingly expected to balance multiple roles—clinical advisor, medication specialist, patient advocate, and business manager. Today, every process needs to be well-organized, from handling medication records and patient data to coordinating with insurers and other healthcare entities. As digital tools keep growing in sophistication, the medical industry has seen tremendous shifts in how data is stored, shared, and secured.
DocStation released to Pharmacy Innovators
Select group among the first to use revolutionary software.
The Power of Specialty Pharmacy Data
Specialty pharmacy is a unique and complex sector of the health care industry. High cost pharmaceutical products are dispensed by specialty pharmacies to treat complex and often rare disease states. Data have a major impact on the industry for clinical and business reasons.
Provider Status is Inevitable
Support at the state level will fuel pharmacists’ path to payment.
Pharmacist Providers: An Untapped Resource
In the complex and often challenging landscape of modern healthcare, access to timely, high-quality, and affordable care remains a significant hurdle for millions. The growing shortage of physicians, particularly in primary care and rural areas, is a critical challenge facing the U.S. healthcare system today. Forecasts predict a significant deficit in the coming years, leading to increase
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