Tag: Medical Coding Changes

Medicare payment rules 2025

CMS Unveils Proposed Rules Impacting Medicare Payments for 2025

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has unveiled a series of Medicare payment rules that will dramatically impact Medicare payments for 2025. These changes encompass payment rates, coding guidelines, coverage criteria, and quality measures for various healthcare providers. Physicians, in particular, face a proposed average payment rate cut of 2.93% under the fee […]

CPT® 2024 Update: New Codes and Guidelines

Table of Contents Evaluation and Management Surgery: Musculoskeletal System Surgery: Respiratory System Surgery: Cardiovascular System Surgery: Urinary System Surgery: Female Genital System Surgery: Nervous System Radiology Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Category III Codes 2024 CPT Coding updates:  Take a look at the updates in CPT coding and guidelines for professional services. Every year, on January […]
Intricacies-of-Evaluation-and-Management-Coding

Navigating E&M Code Changes

It is expected that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will release a completely revamped version of the evaluation and management (E&M) codes by 2021, particularly for the office visit codes (999201-99205 and 99211-99215). In addition to the changes to the office visit codes, there were significant changes to the 2023 guidelines. These […]
Policy-Changes-for-Medicare-Payments-Under-the-PFS

Policy Changes for Medicare Payments Under the PFS

On November 2, 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued CY 2023 Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule (Final Rule), implementing certain updates and policy changes for Medicare payments under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) and changes to the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), effective on or after January 1, 2023. The final […]
the-impact-of-coding-on-maternal-outcomes-part-iii

The Impact of Coding on Maternal Outcomes: Part III

Severe maternal morbidity often intersects with cesarean deliveries. Reducing the number of cesarean deliveries can lower the maternal mortality rate, and one of the drivers of cesarean rates is thought to be induction of labor (IOL). In 2014, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) adopted definitions for labor, labor induction, and augmentation of […]
medical-legal-impact-of-2021-em-changes

Medical/Legal Impact of 2021 E&M Changes

Without detailed documentation, providers may face an uphill battle in defending themselves from quality audits and even malpractice issues. Up until 2021, at least for the prior two decades, coders and clinicians relied upon the established Evaluation and Management (E&M) guidelines to determine which E&M code was appropriate for each specific encounter. The 1995 guidelines […]