Archive for the Week of May 26, 2006
Archive for the Week of May 26, 2006
Welcome to the medical billing blog archive for the week of May 26, 2006.
Here you will find links to every article added to the Outsource Management Group web site during the week of May 26, 2006.
You can browse this week's archives by clicking the "More" button from any of the excerpts below.
Questions to Ask When Choosing a Medical Billing Partner
If you feel your practice is busy enough to outsource your medical billing to a third party partner, you’re making a smart choice. Just like any industry, there are medical billing partners that will fit the style of your practice and some that won’t. To find the best fit for your practice, do a little research on what services a medical billing partner could provide that would be valuable to your practice. Some physicians have been burned by doing business with medical billing companies that may have very good intentions and promised great results, but simply didn’t have the on the job experience to handle the myriad of unusual conditions, …
Jumpstart your ECG Medical Billing with Correct Coding
When a patient has an ECG, it is usually for diagnostic purposes and if you don’t do the medical billing correctly to show the medical necessity of the procedure performed, it can result in the claim being only partially paid or completely denied by the carrier. The code range affected is: *93000 (Electrocardiogram, routine ECG with at least 12 leads; with interpretation and report) if the physician performed the ECG and the interpretation *93005 (… tracing only, without interpretation and report) if the physician performs an ECG with tracing only *93010 (… interpretation and report only) if the physician does not own the ECG equipment. When you need to prove …
How Does Medical Billing Work?
It starts with a patient who sees a physician. The patient gives the office their insurance or Medicare card and a new medical billing form is generated. No matter what procedures are rendered to the patient, it will be documented in the form of numbers called CPT codes, on the medical billing form. If the patient has any testing done such as a blood or urine sample, basic evaluation or even a patient history interview, all of this including if the patient is a first time visit or not will be documented on the medical billing form. If there is a reason for the patient not feeling well such as …
Choosing the Wrong Medical Billing Partner Can Cost You
If you feel you’re finally ready to make the choice to outsource your medical billing, be aware the best choice may not be just around the corner from you. With the security of Internet transmissions, you can use a company across the country and be just as secure as if you were handing your documentation directly to someone across the hall from you. Making the choice to use a medical billing company for your practice can save plenty of money. However, choosing the wrong medical billing firm can cost millions and in some cases, your practice. There are numerous benefits to using a medical billing company. One of the biggest …
When To Use 58661 and 49322-59 in Your Medical Billing
Sometimes in medical billing it is difficult to decide when to use current procedural terminology codes 58661 and 49322-59. These codes, like many others seem similar, but in actuality, are quite different. When performing medical billing it is necessary to know when to use current procedural terminology code 58661 versus 49322-59. There are several instances in medical billing where it seems as though several codes would fit the description. The truth is that most of the time there is only one possible current procedural terminology code that would explain a procedure best. It is important that the personnel that perform medical billing for your practice are educated on these slight …
What Exactly is Medical Practice Management?
Along with outsourcing your medical billing to a third party partner, you will also find it very beneficial to outsource your practice management to your medical billing partner. Most medical practice management involves four basic categories 1- Medical coding services2- Medical billing services3- Physician credentialing4- Consulting services Outsourcing your medical coding will be very beneficial to the day-to-day operations of your practice. Allowing an experienced company to handle your medical coding will not ensure that the proper codings will be used, but the latest changes and information to make sure you always get a maximum reimbursement on your medical billing claims will be assured. Along with proper coding go good …
How to Avoid "Medically Unnecessary" Medical Billing Denials
There is very little more frustrating in the realm of medical care than to receive a medical billing claim returned and notated with the words of doom for any medical billing claim: “Medically Unnecessary Procedure”. This is frustrating because it essentially means the services were performed for free and won’t be reimbursed by the insurance carrier or Medicare. There’s little you can do in your practice to ensure that your medical billing claims have proper documentation to show medical necessity of the procedure. ECGs get regular scrutiny for the necessity of the procedure. If your staff is too overwhelmed by the day-to-day business of keeping your patients happy and your …
Modifier v57.1 to Get Close Examination
If you use V57.1 (Other Physical Therapy) in your medical billing claims, be prepared for some close scrutiny of all your submitted medical billing claims. These claims in particular will be closely monitored to ensure that they were medically necessary services actually done by the physician. This review will be taking place in Iowa and other states are slated to follow suit in the coming months. Currently, the review will affect Part B Medicare patients only who are part of the outpatient home healthcare program. The reviewers will select home health outpatient claims with type of bill 34X, revenue code 042X and V57.1 as primary. With the close examinations of …
Make Sure Your DME Deal Doesn’t Look Like a Kickback
Based on a recent deal in which a supplier of DME products would provide equipment to a physician in exchange for a prime space and fees, would directly violate the federal anti-kickback statute, according to the HHS Office of Inspector General latest advisory. The basis of this decision was based on the situation where the agreement would have allowed the physician to become a DME supplier for non-Medicare patients, and the DME supplier would have rented space in the physician’s office to supply DME directly to the physician’s Medicare patients. The reason that this arrangement raised eyebrows is because the in-house DME supply programs either together or individually, pose a …
