By: Sheila Haynes, CPC Coding and Compliance Manager Guidelines for Use of Critical Care Codes (CPT codes 99291 and 99292) To reliably and consistently determine that critical care services, rather than other evaluation and management (E/M) services, are medically necessary the following review criteria must be met in addition to the Current CPT Manual definitions:…
After a year of getting accustomed to the new Evaluation and Management guidelines that went into effect on January 1, 2021, the AMA has provided some much-needed clarification around the Medical Decision Making elements as well as what activities are “not” counted when reporting time as the key criterion for code selection Medical Decision Making…
By: Sheila Haynes, CPC – Coding and Compliance Manager As of January 1, 2021, codes for office/outpatient medical evaluation and management (E/M) care can be selected on the basis of the complexity of the medical decision making (MDM) or on the basis of the total time on the date of the encounter. For psychiatrists who…
The report below describes a patient undergoing a guided drain for abscess. The entire procedure has been documented in detail, describing the step-by-step process used by doctors to carry out the surgery. Keep reading for more on how this procedure was performed. Do you have a complicated surgery case that needs help with coding? RT…
Overview Important female preventive health care includes screening pap tests and pelvic exams. Medicare covers Pap smears, pelvic exams, STI and HPV screenings. A screening Pap test is the laboratory test used to detect early cervical cancer. A screening pelvic exam helps detect precancers, genital cancers, infections, STI’s, reproductive system abnormalities, and other genital/vaginal problems…
Here is a great article that was posted in Business Customers by Ultimate Staffing about what defines professionalism in the era of remote work. “In 2017, a BBC News interview with Professor Robert Kelly went viral when Kelly’s young children walked into the live stream. First was a toddler dancing into the room, then a…
By: Sheila Haynes, CPC Observation care is a well-defined set of specific, clinically appropriate services, which include: Ongoing short-term treatment, Assessment, Reassessment These are furnished while a decision is being made regarding whether patients will require further treatment as hospital inpatients or if they are able to be discharged from the hospital. Observation services are…
The report below describes a patient undergoing surgery for a left heart catheterization. The entire procedure has been documented in detail, describing the step-by-step process used by doctors to carry out the surgery. Keep reading for more on how this procedure was performed. Do you have a complicated surgery case that needs help with coding?…
In a recent Part B newsletter, a question came in regarding the use of clones notes. Per their response, cloned notes can get your practice into legal trouble. Question: We know that if we’re not careful our cloned notes can lead to inappropriate data in an encounter record, which in turn can lead to denials…
With the impending holidays “gratitude” is a popular word often associated with Thanksgiving, but the act of being thankful is a practice that we can implement every day of the year. Consider that the ordinary elements of our lives are something to be grateful for, our health, shelter, food, family and loved ones we care…