Medical Billing Blog: Section - General Info
Archive of all Articles in the General Info Section
This is the archive containing links to all articles written in the General Info section of our blog.
Click any of the article links below to read the entire article or browse another section to the right to read articles on another subject.
Medical Billing Data Theft
Medical Billing Data Theft The Portland Oregon has suffered a severe medical billing data breach. Providence Home Services, a home health agency, recently had their patient records stolen. This medical billing information breach severely compromises the privacy and confidentiality of its patients. Now Providence Home Services may be in trouble for a lack of medical billing security. 365,000 medical billing records were compromised on December 31, 2005. Records that dated back to 1987 were stolen. These included names, dates of birth, addresses, diseases , etc. The medical billing records were stolen from an employee’s car. Apparently, the agency appoints a different employee to cart computer files home every day. This …
History of Medical Billing Therapy Caps
History of Medical Billing Therapy Caps The issue of therapy caps is not a new topic in medical billing. The on again, off again nature of therapy caps has left medical billing staff members spinning. To fully understand the reasons for these limits, it is important to understand the history. Looking back into the history of therapy cap medical billing can give us a glimpse into the future. Perhaps the first introduction of therapy caps was in 1997. This is when Medicare implemented outpatient therapy caps in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. However, like any other medical billing policy, there are always exceptions. Certain providers and beneficiaries were protected …
New Medical Billing Updates
New Medical Billing Updates New medical billing changes grace the therapy scene once again. Medicare part A services for therapy were recently implemented on February 06, 2006. The associated hospital services (AHS) released guideline explanations to help Providers understand the new therapy changes. The AHS is a Hospice and Home Health Intermediary for Medicare. If your practice handles therapy issues, pay attention to these medical billing changes. In therapy medical billing there are modifiers (GP, GO, and GN), revenue codes (42X, 43X, and 44X), and wound care service CPT codes (97602, 97605, 97606, 97597, and 97598). Of the modifiers and codes listed , providers of the outpatient perspective payment system …
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take II
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take II There are several layers of critical care medical billing myths. Previously discussed were two myths . Now an additional three misconceptions will be brought to the forefront. Maximizing your revenue means to fully understand critical care medical billing. One common myth for critical care medical billing is that the time spent with the patient must be continuous. In reality, the physician’s time can be split up in several different chunks. For example, the doctor can visit a patient at his/her bedside for 25 minutes and later view in x-ray of that patient for ten minutes. This would count as 35 minutes for that …
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take I
Medical Billing Critical Care Myths Take I Critical care medical billing codes have been accused of reimbursing meager amounts of money. In fact, critical care codes can bring you a lot of money. The medical billing codes 99291-99292 can only bring proper reimbursement if you steer clear of the common pitfalls. Perhaps the most common medical billing myths in critical care is that each visit must meet every element of an evaluation and management exam. Many times this is difficult during critical visits. In reality, medical billing codes for critical care are timed based. For example, the medical billing CPT code 99291 (Critical care, evaluation and management of the critically …
Medical Billing Strategy for Pessary Coding
Medical Billing Strategy for Pessary Coding Now is the time to fully understand Pessary coding. Pessary placement is becoming more and more common. When doing medical billing for this type of service it is important to know who supplied the device and when the procedure was performed. A Pessary is a device used to correct pelvic floor weakness. It is used during uterine prolapses and urinary incontinence. This device is a perfect non surgical method to treat uterus prolapse. Not only is it cheaper for insurance carriers, but also better for the patient and physician. Although medical billing reimbursement will be less, so will the costs of performing the procedure. …
Various Imaging Views in Medical Billing
Various Imaging Views in Medical Billing For imaging, medical billing should be done for views as opposed to film. Different payers require different methods of coding. There are many different ways to perform medical billing for a bilateral wrist x-ray with two views and a bilateral hand x-ray with two views. If a physician orders two views of both the wrist and a hand, it can get confusing when one film captures both the wrist and hand. You are able to do medical billing for both views. For the most part, payers accept the medical billing code 73100 (Radiological examination, wrist; two views) two times and 73120 (Radiological examination, hand; …
Suspension of Cytology Proficiency Medical Billing
Suspension of Cytology Proficiency Medical Billing Keep your medical billing ears open for cytology proficiency testing changes. The college of American pathologists (CAP) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services (CMS) have completely different ideas about cytology proficiency testing penalties. Your medical billing staff members may need to prepare for quick changes in the coming months. In 2005, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services introduced cytology proficiency testing to the country. Last year sanctions were not imposed on laboratories which performed this testing. Medical billing was allowed and failures in the testing itself were not penalized. 2006 is different. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services intend on …
Medical Billing for New Test Reduces Need for Colonoscopy
Medical Billing for New Test Reduces Need for Colonoscopy Medical billing reimbursement for colonoscopies may reduce in future years. The introduction of a new test called immunochemical fecal occult blood test (FOBT) is a better indicator of colon cancer. When used correctly, the immunochemical fecal occult blood test severely reduce the need for the colonoscopy in medical billing. During a screening exam, patients usually take a test called guaiac FOBT. If patients test positive for this traditional test, the use of the new immunochemical fecal occult blood test would be in order. Unfortunately, the old test produced many fake positives. This created the need for more colonoscopies to be performed. …
Medical Billing of Manual Blood Clot Evacuation
Medical Billing of Manual Blood Clot Evacuation Medical billing codes don’t always fit in a nice little package. You will inevitably run into problems in which you cannot find the correct code for your claim. There will also be times in which two codes fit your procedure description. Choosing the correct medical billing code is a skill that you will acquire over time. One example of a difficult procedure to code is a postpartum blood clot removal. For instance, if the patient delivers a baby and is then brought back to the operating room for a manual blood clot evacuation , bimanual exam , and a pelvic examination, what code …
