Category: Blog

tips

3 Coding Tips From Medical Bill Consultants’ CEO

Beth Morgan, president and CEO of Medical Bill Consultants, has over 40 years of experience coding and billing for various providers and facilities. She provided these three tips: Read the notes carefully. If coders and billers don’t read notes carefully, they might miss a key component that the provider also missed. For example, if the […]
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Medicare-Card-New-

New Medicare Cards Are Coming

The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015, requires us to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019. A new Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI) will replace the SSN-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) on the new Medicare cards for Medicare transactions like billing, eligibility status, and claim status. The […]
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Coding Timing

Coding for time vs. E/M elements

Q: When you are basing an office visit on time, do you need to meet the levels in history, exam and medical decision-making too? A: It is not unusual to spend a considerable amount of time face-to-face with a patient reviewing problems, adjusting medication dosages and counseling or coordinating care, only to find that you […]
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Consolidated Billing Code Updates for 2018

SNF Consolidated Billing Code Updates for 2018

The skilled nursing facility (SNF) consolidated billing (CB) file reflects new codes for 2018, as well as codes that are excluded from SNF CB for Medicare Part A claims payment. The SNF annual update file contains a comprehensive list of codes involved in editing institutional claims submitted to A/B Medicare administrative contractors (MAC) for services […]
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CODING: New FESS Codes for 2018

2018 brings us new functional endoscopic sinus surgery codes (FESS) which bundle a total ethmoidectomy with both a frontal sinusotomy and a sphenoidotomy with and without removal of tissue.  2018 CPT® also provides a new bundled code for a frontal and sphenoid endoscopic balloon dilation. On initial review of these new codes and the instructions […]
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4 Ways Hospitals Can Lower Claim Denial Rates

This is evidenced by the Advisory Board’s 2017 revenue cycle benchmarks, which revealed the average 350-bed hospital saw denial write-offs increase from $3.9 million in 2011 to $7 million last year. To address the problem of increasing denials, healthcare organizations should focus on categorizing claims by type, as well as success of appeals, according to […]
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A Quick Guide to Modifiers 26 and TC

Occasionally, the total service/procedure described by a single CPT® code is comprised of two distinct portions: a professional component and a technical component. The professional component of a diagnostic service/procedure is provided by the physician, and may include supervision, interpretation, and a written report. The technical component of a diagnostic service/procedure accounts for equipment, supplies, […]
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