In October 2015, physicians across the United States transitioned from the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Ninth Revision to the tenth revision (ICD-10-CM, the US version of the World Health Organization [WHO] ICD-10). Although the ICD-10-CM was a new concept for physicians in the United States, the international variant has been available since […]
A summary of the CPT® Editorial Panel’s actions during its February 2019 meeting offers us a glimpse of changes to come for the CPT 2020 and 2021. Perhaps the biggest news are approved revisions to office and outpatient E/M codes 99201-99215, scheduled for 2021 implementation, covered here. Other Approved Changes For 2021 Include: Significant revision to […]
The CPT® codes that are considered a laboratory test under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) change each year, as well as throughout the year, making it difficult for healthcare providers and laboratories to keep up. Here are the CPT codes for 2019 that are subject to or excluded from CLIA edits in easy-to-look up […]
The importance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Medical Coding is often understated and also overstating the same is quite difficult.. to get in-depth with how AI is actually bringing changes in MCA, we must get to the basics of what Medical Billing and Coding really are. Medical Coding Medical coding, if we talk about it […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a policy change modification to the claims processing logic for Modifier 59 Distinct procedural service (and the optional patient-relationship modifiers XE, XS, XP, and XU) on February 15, 2019. These modifiers are only processed when applied to the Column 2 code in a bundled pair, per Correct Coding Initiative […]
A frequent knock on electronic health records has been that they’re just glorified billing systems that fail to provide enough clinical functionality to make a significant difference in quality of care. So it’s somewhat incongruous that a recent Black Book report on revenue cycle management (RCM) system adoption would say that 26 percent of hospitals […]
Cryptocurrency benefits medical billing services, and in turn healthcare staff and patients, in so many ways. Here’s what to know A cryptocurrency is a decentralized virtual or digital currency that’s used as a medium of exchange for using particular products/services. It is like normal currencies but it also facilitates the exchange of digital information. Counterfeiting cryptocurrency is difficult […]
Controversy continues to swirl around this subject. A recent article of mine focused on the argument that Medicare Advantage (MA) plans have to follow the two-midnight rule. It certainly generated buzz; I received a number of emails with comments and questions. First, I want to note that I love getting comments and questions. I can’t […]
Undercoding, or reporting a lesser service than was performed and documented, is sometimes employed as a defensive strategy to stave off claims denials or audits. But, undercoding can make a provider an outlier, and may create consequential patient care, compliance, and financial liabilities. For example: Undercoding Leaves Money On The Table, Driving Down Provider […]
As providers engage in complex payment models and collect more from patients, they must learn to automate key functions to improve healthcare revenue efficiency. The healthcare revenue cycle has many moving parts. From patient access and registration to medical billing and coding, provider organizations of all sizes must achieve revenue cycle efficiency to ensure […]