CU Newsletter August 2008

Welcome to the CU Newsletter. Our goal is to keep you informed about new product offerings and the many features and benefits of CU software products and services. ~David Schaer, Director of Product Management and Marketing

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In this issue:

TIMS Version 3.4.2
New Features and Enhancements
Now Ready for General Release!

TIMS HME Version 3.4
A comprehensive list of software improvements and a brand new module for A/R management round out the latest version of TIMS HME

TIMS Pharmacy Version 3.4
The latest version of TIMS Pharmacy contains across the board improvements in Oral Medications, IV Therapy, Pharmacy Billing modules

TIMS HME Version 3.4
A comprehensive list of software improvements and a brand new module for A/R management round out the latest version of TIMS HME

A/R Manager
With a sleek new user-interface, improved structure and integration possibilities, TIMS Cash Application is on course to become much more than a tool for applying receipts. It is evolving into a more powerful solution for managing all aspects of accounts receivable, compelling a new name, TIMS A/R Manager. TIMS A/R Manager V3.4 streamlines and accelerates the process of applying receipts and boasts improved tools for balancing. Completely customizable to your job function, you can sort and filter the data to meet your daily needs, as well as save the view for future sessions. Mouse functionality is available with retention of 10-key capabilities when practical. A/R Manager offers more information per check and distribution for fast and accurate balancing, such as the check amount, check balance, distribution amount, payments applied, reapplied adjustment balance and cash remaining. Information is now stored in a single table, eliminating data discrepancies, and invoice, order and claim information is easily accessed via a click of a tab. Also included is the ability to change aging values, adjust and move distribution amounts and view pending A/R through Customer Centric Inquiry or Account Inquiry, making A/R Manager an indispensable asset for cash application.

On the horizon for A/R Manager is a highly flexible and revolutionary tool for analyzing, working and tracking accounts receivable. This innovative approach to credit and collections allows you to design work flows that include the following:

• Queues – collection agents set up either individually or in a group
• Work items – past due A/R by apply-to number for a certain responsible party
• Generation strategy – the criteria for when A/R is to be collected
• Distribution strategy – the criteria for who is to work/collect on A/R

Determine the work you need to accomplish (i.e. a particular insurance, customer or range of customers who are past due by a defined number of days) and who will be responsible for it. For example, you can queue an agent(s) to handle collection of patient portion A/R, 15 days past due and another to collect on insurance portion A/R, 60 days past due. Or, devise a different strategy for A/R that is over a specific dollar amount (i.e. collect A/R valuing $1,000 at one day past due). The system quickly and easily adapts to all your collection needs by identifying the A/R that meets your strategy criteria and creating applicable work items for you to distribute and apply a level of priority. Through A/R Manager’s work flow system, you can design new ways to drive your collection agency's efficiency and recovery to higher levels. Find out what makes A/R Manager a special class of credit and collection software, and why the best is yet to come.

Customer Centric
Customer Centric (CC) delivers even more information and user control in TIMS V3.4, with a new form, additional columns and enhanced filtering. A new Rental Activity form offers various views of your customers’ rental agreements, status and billing information, as well as any medical information. You can quickly filter the rental activity to view information such as active rentals, a particular rental number or a range of rental agreements. Other valuable data added to CC include:

• Number of days outstanding and past due
• Original ship-to customer number and ship-to address information
• Leased quantity for the rental group/item and the cylinder net balance
• Department name and contested status/date of cylinders (ACM only)
• Tag ID required flag (ACM only)
• Insurance number and location on all forms with responsibility information
• Customer’s email address/fax number defaults on emailed/faxed documents
• UPS Online Tracking Information (add-on software only)

New filtering and display controls offer data views that are not only versatile, but also crucial to maintaining classified information. Added customer filters allow you to search by the order number, P/O number, invoice number, prescription number (TIMS Pharmacy only) and/or insurance claim number (Canada only) for even faster access to a customer’s account. A new Auto feature allows you to let the system determine whether to auto hide a column based on a set of criteria. For example, on various Receivable forms, you can choose to view the Ship-to Customer Number column and then select the Auto check box to auto hide the data if the ship-to customer is the same as the bill-to customer (customer currently being viewed in CCI). If the ship-to customer is different than the bill-to customer, the system displays the column of information.

Finally, use the new show_inquiry_cost identifier to grant/restrict access to cost and gross margin information, ensuring the security of confidential data.

Medical Billing
TIMS V3.4 offers full support of Medicare’s 36 Month Oxygen Billing rule, including the ability to identify which insurance companies use the ruling and an Oxygen Cross Reference File to store rental items and corresponding customer-owned items. In addition, Computers Unlimited developed programming to handle the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS) Competitive Bidding Program that is pending per recent legislation.

A new ABN File allows you to store Advance Beneficiary Notice (ABN) codes to associate with a non-covered item/service in Order Entry requiring the patient obtain an ABN. If Crystal Reports is part of your system configuration, you can then print an ABN by order line and payor for each ABN code upon filing the order.

Even more customer/patient information can be obtained when using the Add Patient in OE feature via the addition of new fields and a new Coverage tab. Also in Order Entry, you can quickly log in to Emdeon’s website to check online insurance eligibility for patients or submit a real-time response via Emdeon Internet Transaction Services.* Finally, additional modifiers from advance or new rentals post to the Rental Agreement File so that interim rentals also contain the additional modifiers.

More information is available for EOBs in V3.4. The NPI number prints under the Perf Prov column on an EOB, while the patient responsibility total now includes the total dollar amounts for PR status codes from the EOB File. Also, you can now easily identify all EOB batches created during ERN translation via the batch number on the EOB Upload Exception Report (option MB 120 – EOB Auto created During ERN is activated).

*Add-on software requiring EDI, eligibility_inquiry identifier and option ED 27 - EDI Insurance activated

Mobile Delivery
Mobile Delivery V3.4 maximizes the effectiveness of your drivers while streamlining dispatching through new automated processes and added information. Dispatchers can now readily identify who entered an order in TIMS by their initials and can quickly download orders by either destination branch or origination branch for all companies.

Enhanced Customer Stops and Orders forms clearly display a customer’s city/state/zip information, suspended status and cash on delivery (COD) status, providing the driver with even more delivery instruction. This information also prints on the receipt as does the volume for either fixed, bulk or variable gases per a new flag in the CU Mobile Configuration File.

Also assisting the driver in prompt and smooth deliveries is the ability to return all non-bulk rentals at a customer’s site and the option to default the patient’s name in the Received by field (CU Mobile Configuration File). If a person other than the patient signs for the order, drivers can enter the person’s relationship to the patient and the reason the patient could not sign. An optional add-on software feature requires the received by name and then uploads the received by name to TIMS during end of day processing. Please refer to Order Processing for more information on this useful tracking tool.

Using Bluetooth technology on the new wireless RFID tag reader, drivers can freely read RFID tags, eliminating the issue of worn or broken cables. Additionally, improved logging allows the driver to easily determine why the checkhostdate function failed, minimizing time spent troubleshooting.

Order Processing
A new, optional add-on software feature allows you to prompt for the name of the person signing for the ordered items when filing in Order Entry. The name entered in Order Entry prints after the text, “Signed by,” on the picking ticket and invoice. In addition, if you have Mobile Delivery, CU Mobile requires a received by name when signing off on an order and then uploads the received by name to TIMS when you select to upload to dispatcher during the end of day processing.

Truck Distribution
A new Missing Route Report was added in V3.4 so that you can easily identify those customers/patients that were not assigned a route.

TIMS Pharmacy Version 3.4
Across the board improvements round out the latest version of TIMS Pharmacy, from Oral Medications, IV Therapy to Pharmacy Billing

Oral Medications

Eliminate Printing Labels for Over-the-Counter Drugs/Supplies – The new Do not print OM labels check box in the Inventory File allows you to specify whether or not a label prints for an item. During batch processing, the system skips printing labels for all items with the check box selected, and when manually entering a prescription, the Print prescription labels check box on the Fill Options window in Prescription Order Entry always defaults to unselected. The system also displays a message notifying you that the item is set to not print labels in the Inventory File if you attempt to print a label for a specific prescription. In addition, if you are copying an item from the Medi-Span SDDB Drug File, the same check box also displays on the Copy to Inventory window, allowing you to specify the default for the item once it is copied to the Inventory File.

Physician Refill Authorization Enhancements – Additional filter criteria (i.e. expired prescriptions only, minimum refills available, date range, etc.) and the ability to print all prescriptions for one patient/physician on a single form are the most recent improvements to this feature of Prescription Order Entry. The Physician Refill Authorization Report now prints in a professional postscript format as well.

Assembly File Pricing Source and Drug Compounds – The Assembly File Pricing source field can now determine the default for pricing drug compounds in Prescription Order Entry and Rebill Processing. If the insurance is set to Bill all components, however, pricing source fields are disabled in both programs.

Oral Medications Picking Ticket Displays Patient Copay Amount – Your patients can now easily determine which part of the total bill is their responsibility. Through the use of two new options, the system allows you to specify if you want the NCPDP payment amount and/or the patient’s payment amount to print on the picking ticket. Printing this information also requires that the Price ticket field in the Customer File is set to Extended price. In addition, if printing the NCPDP amount, it is also required that the customer is assigned an insurance that uses form 417.

IV Therapy

More Descriptive TPN Error Messages – Since a TPN order can contain numerous items and each item can be ordered in a variety of ways, it is extremely difficult to establish which item is the cause of a calculation error. Thus, the system now displays all error information that the calcTPN calculator generates about an item, including which ordered item caused the problem and detail as to why the problem occurred.

New Auditing Capabilities – The Audit Trail File now includes auditing for IV orders through the addition of the audit trail IV table.* Each time a user modifies, fills, refills, returns, deletes or rebills an IV order, the system records details in the table. To further assist users, the Order audit inquiry function in IV Order Entry allows you to quickly and readily view information stored in the new table. The inquiry feature is the first of its kind, as historically all auditing took place in the Audit Trail File. It enables you to track exactly which prescribed, dispensed, drug/supply and TPN records were added, changed, filled and deleted in a session. It also allows you to view log date/time, the order line number, the username responsible for the activity, the type of activity, the column name and the old data value followed by the new value.

*Previous auditing capabilities still exist with limited detail and are not compatible with the new inquiry feature in IV Order Entry.

Pharmacy Billing

Pharmacy Claim Report Enhancements – The system provides several new criteria on the Pharmacy Claim Report, such as: the ability to specify the system (IV, Oral Medications or both); a cutoff date; selection of None and full for interface status; a patient/insurance/therapy/per diem sort. You may now also choose to print a number of items on the report, including interface date, payor class, claim status, assembly description, NDC, etc. In addition, the report displays added information about patient status and refills, insurance and therapy sequences, dispensing and billing units of measure, subtotals and totals for the allowable (if you choose) and an arrow indicating that cost is greater than the allowable.

Interface Additional Modifiers – HME order files store interfaced pharmacy claims until they are printed and posted. Additional modifiers fields from these stored claims are now also updated with additional modifier information from the Procedure Code File when interfacing pharmacy claims.

Generic Product Identifier (GPI) Field Adds Flexibility to Drug Substitutions – The GPI comparison precision field in the Pharmacy File allows you to control how many digits of the GPI number the system compares when substituting a drug on a prescription. Previously, drug items could not be changed on a prescription unless the GPI was an exact match. For example, now if you want to substitute drugs of different strengths, you can set the field to 12 in order to ignore the last two digits of the GPI representing the strength of the drug.

Per Diem Processing Quantity Lookup – The Quantity field in Per Diem Processing now includes a lookup, allowing you to reference the per diem contract database that provides a list of appropriate contract rates by quantity. Once you select a rate, the system displays the quantity value in the field.

Check for Therapy Authorization in Claims Processing – The Claims Processing program automatically searches for a therapy authorization record and uses it if one exists. Recent development involves the same process even if the Procedure Code File or the Insurance Company File programs do not indicate that a therapy authorization is required, which was necessary for it to appear on the claim in previous versions.

Competitive Bidding – Computers Unlimited developed programming to handle the Medicare Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS) and diabetic mail order Competitive Bidding Program that is pending per recent legislation.