Dial-up Customers Using the 717 Area Code Modem Telephone Number

Dial-up Customers Using the 717 Area Code Modem Telephone Number

EDI trading partners still connecting to Novitas via the former 717 area code modem telephone number will no longer be able to connect for claim submission and report retrieval as of 12:01 AM Eastern Time (ET) on Friday, August 29, 2014.

The majority of our trading partners have already made these changes, and we appreciate your assistance with this effort.  Currently, customers still connecting through the 717 area code mode telephone number may already be experiencing:

• Inability to connect for claim submission, remittance and/or report retrieval.


• Decreased connection quality.


• Frequent connection time-outs.


• If your modem is more than four years old, you may need to purchase a new dial-up modem in order to connect.

Effective August 29, 2014 at 12:01 AM ET, dial-up trading partners must transition to the new number, 904-371-9510.  We have found that customers who have made the switch to the new dial-up number may need to down speed their modem if they are having difficulties connecting.

Customers who have not changed to the new connections should speak to their software vendor immediately to resolve any connection issues you are experiencing.   Additionally, trading partners who are located in the 717 area code will need long distance phone service in order to connect.

If you have questions regarding this change, please contact an EDI Analyst at the numbers listed below.

EDI Services
1-877-235-8073 (JL)
1-855-252-8782 (JH)
www.novitas-solutions.com

Study: e-Commerce Full Value Elusive

A new study from the HIMSS Analytics research unit of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society shows many hospitals use electronic commerce in their purchasing process but have a ways to go before getting full value from e-commerce.

The Chicago-based firm surveyed 199 hospital purchasing officers for the study, which Louisville, Colo.-based e-commerce vendor GHX sponsored. Results show that 95 percent of acute care facilities with more than 150 beds electronically order at least some medical-surgical supplies.

About one-third of responding hospitals use an exchange service as their sole method for ordering medical-surgical supplies electronically, with 15 percent using direct electronic data interchange connections. Thirteen percent use both ways.

Sixty two percent of respondents receive updated pricing catalogs for products under contract electronically, but only about half of those receive the catalogs via EDI.
Respondents identify a number of issues related to e-commerce that need improvements. These include processing invoices, real-time discrepancy reporting and exception management. They also report considerable supplier reluctance or incapability to conduct business via EDI.

To access the study, click here.

--Joseph Goedert