When outpatient hospitals and physicians switch to ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes October 1, they will still continue to use CPT® codes to report procedures. But some facilities are planning to use the new procedure code set, ICD-10-PCS, as well.
The ears--more formally, the auditory system--have their own chapter in ICD-10-CM, no longer relegated to the end of the neurology codes. Codes in Chapter 8, Diseases of the Ear and Mastoid Process (H60-H95), are located between the chapters for the optical system and the circulatory system.
A diabetic patient is admitted with gangrene. The physician does not specifically link the diabetes and the gangrene, but also does not document any other potential cause of the gangrene. Should you code both conditions?
Congress needed just a week to throw a huge monkey wrench into the healthcare industry's plans for ICD-10 implementation. On March 26, House leadership introduced H.R. 4302, "Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014." By April 1, the bill had passed the Senate and been signed into law by President Obama.
At the time of this publication, the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 bill was recently passed. The status quo regarding physician reimbursement from Medicare has been maintained. So what? That system has been broken for 20 years. ICD-10 will be postponed for provider billing for another year. So what? Life will go on as it has for the past 36 years with ICD-9-CM. In other words, nothing has changed. We're good for another year. Pressure's off! ...Right?
This month’s issue focuses on the ICD-10 implementation delay and what it means for providers and coders. Members of the Briefings on Coding Compliance Strategies, as well as Robert S. Gold, MD, offer their takes on the delay. In addition, we highlight a new concept in ICD-10-CM—principal diagnoses that act as their own CC or MCC. And we answer your coding questions.
When outpatient hospitals and physicians switch to ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes October 1, they will still continue to use CPT ® codes to report procedures. But some facilities are planning to use the new procedure code set, ICD-10-PCS, as well.
When Congress passed the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, it mandated at least a one-year delay in ICD-10 implementation. Members of the Briefings on Coding Compliance Strategies editorial board, who represent a wide range of industry stakeholders, offered their thoughts on two questions related to the delay.
CMS’ 2015 IPPS proposed rule , released April 30, focuses on quality measures, such as the hospital-acquired condition (HAC) reduction, readmissions reduction, and hospital value-based purchasing and hospital readmissions reduction programs.
Providers struggle to reconcile conflicts between recent CMS regulations and the CPT® Manual and other AMA publications. Jugna Shah, MPH , Valerie A. Rinkle, MPA , and Linda S. Dietz, RHIA, CCS, CCS-P , look at specific areas of confusion and how to code them accurately.
The ICD-10 implementation delay has impacted training timelines for many providers. Rhonda Buckholtz, CPC, CPMA, CPC-I, CENTC, CGSC, COBGC, CPEDC , talks about how this time can be used to improve physician documentation, easing the transition for both coders and providers.
Q: I have been told to use the general surgery CPT ® codes in the 20000 series for reporting excisions of sebaceous cysts when the surgeon must cut into the subcutaneous layer. I don’t agree with this, since the 20000 codes do not give ICD-9-CM code 706.2 (sebaceous cyst) as a billable diagnosis code. Because a sebaceous, epidermal, or pilar cyst begins in the skin and may grow large enough to press into the subcutaneous layer, I think we should report an excision code from the 11400 series, and if need be, the 12000 codes for closure.
A review of Medicare CT scan claims from July 2011 to June 2012 found that 16% claims had an improper payment rate, according to the most recent Medicare Quarterly Provider Compliance Newsletter .
Shelley C. Safian, PhD, CCS-P, CPC-H, CPC-I, reviews which diagnosis codes, in both ICD-9-CM and ICD-10-CM, Medicare recently approved to provide medically necessary for inserting pacemaker systems.
During AHIMA’s two-day ICD-10-CM/PCS and Computer-Assisted Coding Summit April 22-23, AHIMA ran some real-time polls with attendees texting in their responses. The results of the polls provide some...
Some body parts just need a little reinforcement. Or maybe a little augmentation. Use root operation Supplement (third character U) to report procedures that involve putting in or on biological or...
Rose Dunn, MBA, RHIA, CPA, CHPS, FACHE, FAHIMA, chief operating officer of First Class Solutions, started the second day of the AHIMA ICD-10 and CAC Summit with a rundown of ways HIM professionals...
Cheryl Ericson, MS, RN, CCDS, CDIP, discusses the difference between “after study” and “due to” when it comes to choosing the correct principal diagnosis .
