This video summarizes the rules related to billing for nursing facility visits in about 5 minutes. Covers CPT® codes 99304-99310 including discussion about these services relative to hospital discharge.

Say good bye to “rule out” for physician claims. This review of coding for signs and symptoms for physician services will bring you up-to-date in about 5 minutes…

Some of the most common questions we receive are in regard to selecting category of code for E/M services. This 20 minute video offers step by step guidance for accurately selecting the category of code for office, inpatient, emergency, and observation services.

Whose provider number is being used to bill services to the insurer, or to Medicare? This is a compliance risk area often overlooked. This 10 minute video defines incident to and shared services and explains the Medicare rules around billing for these services. Reduce your compliance risk by accurately billing these services…

How is your practice fairing with the switch to ICD-10. Hopefully, it has been a seamless transition. Regardless of your ICD-10 experience, this 20 minute video is worth a look. Includes detailed discussion of changes, tips and more… Relevant Search Terms: external cause codes, diagnosis coding, Z codes

Updated September 18, 2018 Coding. Why does it keep changing? This video has been removed because the rules related to these services have changed. We have provided links to updated content at the end of the post. Can you bill for services performed and documented by a medical student? The resources below explain Medicare teaching […]

99211 is the established patient E/M services code for services that do not require the presence of a physician, often referred to as nurse visits. What are some examples of this type of service? When can it be billed and when can it NOT be billed. This short video answers frequently asked questions about nurse […]

This short video addresses your questions about coding a higher level of service due to patient behavior.  Includes CPT® guidelines, tips on selecting level of service, and documentation requirements…  

Coding. Why does it keep changing? The post you are looking for was out of date, and we removed it. For the most up-to-date information about coding for newborn services, see our Newborn and Pediatric Coding Guide. This guide covers inpatient and critical care services for newborns, including transfer of care to a higher acuity facility. […]

Coding. Why does it keep changing? The post you are looking for was out of date, and we removed it. You might find these articles about telehealth, Digital E/M, and virtual services to be helpful. Back to Can I get paid   Relevant Search Terms: 99441, 99442, 99443, 98966, 98967, 98968, coordination of care, telephone calls

Coding. Why does it keep changing? The post you are looking for was out of date, and we removed it. You can find a complete list of teaching physician coding resources here. Back to “Can I get paid…”   Relevant Search Terms: teaching physician, rules, student services, Medicare rules, medical students  

In 2016, CMS began paying for physicians, NPs and PAs to have a discussion about end of life planning with patients. Find out more in this short video. Relevant Search Terms: 99497, 99498, advance care planning, advance directive, end of life planning

An Overview of Transitional Care Management for Discharge “I can bill all discharges with Transitional Care Management codes.  They’re all moderate complexity” Recently, a client wrote to me about a physician who wants to use the Transitional Care Management (TCM) codes for all discharges.  The physician stated that all patients who were discharged from the […]

Use modifier -57 at the visit for the decision for surgery, when surgery is scheduled for that day or the next calendar day A surgeon should always be paid for an E/M service that is the initial evaluation prior to a major surgery. The E/M service may occur days or weeks before a scheduled surgery, […]

Advance Care Planning CPT® Codes Overview Medical practices perform countless tasks every day for which there is no payment. CMS continually states that it wants to support non-procedural and in the past decade has added payment for some non-face-to-face services, including Care Plan Oversight, Transitional Care Management and Chronic Care Management. CPT® Codes 99497 & […]

Coding. Why does is keep changing? This post was out of date and has been removed. For information about chronic care management and other care management services, see these resources: Chronic care management services (CCM), CPT® 99491 Chronic care management Behavioral health integration and CCM codes Or Browse the resource library by topic, keyword, or code […]

I got a call from a vendor trying to develop a video conferencing product for a physician to use to talk to a patient who is at home. He said “I’m having trouble finding codes for telemedicine that the doctor can use.” Aren’t we all. Talking to your patient using a secure video connection doesn’t […]

Certain medical stories are irresistible to the popular press: ICD-10 external cause codes that are ridiculous (W61.43XD, pecked by a turkey, subsequent encounter) or medical practices using their electronic health records in a way that increases their revenue.  A recent headline was eye-catching, as headlines are meant to be, “Report finds more flaws in digitizing […]

In order to be eligible for Medicare covered home health services a patient must be considered home bound.  But what does that mean?  That the patient can never leave the house?  Doesn’t generally leave the house?  Is like a Vermonter in a snow storm, and doesn’t see the point of leaving the house? CMS recently […]

Years ago, I worked with an Orthopedist who needed hours less sleep than I or the average person needed.  While it would be incorrect to say he never slept, he woke up early, did his administrative tasks before his wife and kids were awake and arrived for work on time and ready to go.  But, […]