• E-mail
• Print
• RSS

This news makes MSSPs' job easier

Credentialing Resource Center Connection, April 14, 2004

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Credentialing Resource Center Connection!

Dear credentialing colleague:

Today I am pleased to report that the complex task of primary source verification just became easier.

With the establishment of the AMA Physician Masterfile, one could see the handwriting on the wall. Eventually, nearly all the information needed to verify or identify a physician's education, training, certification, licensure status, significant disciplinary action history, malpractice payments, governmental sanctions, etc. would be available through an easy and inexpensive Internet download. We have almost reached this outcome.

This week, Pat McDonald, director of the AMA's department of credentialing products, reported to me that the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) has now designated the AMA Physician Profile as an "official designated equivalent source" for verification of board status. Credentialers may now put information from the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) together with the AMA master file printout and have a fairly comprehensive picture of a physician's primary qualifications.

With this news, the ABMS now has three official sources that credentialers can use to verify ABMS board certification: the AMA Physician Profile, CertiFacts, and Boardcertifieddocs.com. "This is big news in that most AMA Physician Profile users currently do not use the ABMS board certification on the Profile as primary source equivalent. They officially can now," says McDonald.

Congratulations to the AMA for helping MSSPs with the important work of credentialing healthcare practitioners.

That's all for this week.

All the best,

Hugh Greeley

http://www.greeley.com/seminars/

Want to receive articles like this one in your inbox? Subscribe to Credentialing Resource Center Connection!

• E-mail to a Colleague
• Print
• RSS
• Archive