In general, urologists are doing quite well financially. The laws of supply and demand have finally caught up with the profession, as we had predicted years ago. However, you could do better. How can urologists increase their income? In this article, we share with you steps you can take to increase your income, and, at […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released on June 20 the new ICD-10-CM codes descriptions, tables and index, and addendum for fiscal year 2020. There are 273 additions, 21 deletions, and 30 revisions, effective Oct. 1, 2019, which will increase the code set from 71,932 to 72,184 diagnoses. Chapter Review The majority of changes to new […]
Over my almost 30-year surgical coding career, the documentation for assistant surgeons consisted of only the name of the assistant surgeon in the operative note header. Most often there was no mention of the role of the assistant surgeon in the body of the operative note; it was assumed the assistant surgeon provided an extra […]
Medical coders who were unsure what documentation non-Medicare payers would expect in light of the Patients Over Paperwork Initiative now have more to go on. The initiative reduced documentation requirements for outpatient evaluation and management service codes (CPT® 99201-99215) provided to Medicare Part B patients beginning in 2021. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) indicated in their initiative that, although […]
The Durable Medical Equipment Medicare Administrative Contractors (DME MAC) are changing the requirement that medical coders to use the right (RT) and left (LT) modifiers for certain HCPCS codes, and that the modifiers be used when billing two of the same item or accessory on the same date of service and the items are being used bilaterally. The […]
CMS released the fiscal year (FY) 2020 ICD-10-PCS changes on Friday, May 31, which include two code revisions, 734 additions, and 2,056 invalidations. The files include information on ICD-10-PCS updates that all inpatient coders must use for discharges occurring from October 1, 2019, through September 30, 2020. The total number of ICD-10-PCS codes for 2019 was 78,881. […]
Ten new HCPCS Level II codes for drugs and biologicals will be payable for Medicare, effective for claims with dates of service on or after July 1, 2019. HCPCS Level II codes is a standardized coding system that is used primarily to identify products, supplies, and services not included in the CPT code set jurisdiction, such as […]
There are the standard reasons medical claims are denied, such as putting the wrong modifier on a code or putting the diagnoses in the wrong sequence. But did you know that some reasons are not the fault of medical coding? 5 Ways Your Medical Claim Can Be Denied Denials can be cause by more than an […]
Q: Are there any updates on the Evaluation and Management code requirements? A: The American Medical Association (AMA) has now weighed in with their E/M coding requirement modifications, which means that all payers will be affected in 2021. If you remember, Medicare announced plans to revamp the E/M coding structure in 2018 and was met with […]
Dive Brief CMS Administrator Seema Verma announced Thursday the agency will overhaul coding regulations that she argues have hindered beneficiary access to new medical technology. Medical device companies will now be able to apply for a new permanent Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code twice a year, instead of annually. CMS also recently eliminated […]