Hot Coding Topics

Track Payer’s Preferred H1N1 Admin Code — or Risk Rejections

Code 488.1 does not = confirmed lab. Swine flu has made an early arrival in several states and in your 2009 preventive and sick coding. To avoid denials for H1N1 vaccination administration, you’re going to have to check which of three administration code options your major payers want. “Some payers want you to use the new [...] Related articles:

  1. 2 New HCPCS Codes for H1N1 Vaccine AdministrationPlus: New Bevacizumab code is effective Oct. 1. If you’re...
  2. Correct ICD-9 Coding for H1N1 (Swine Flu) Before you carry your swine flu diagnosis over to...
  3. Capture Vaccine Admin Without Charging Products These VFC FAQs help you report the seemingly impossible....

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November 3, 2009
CPT / Hot Coding Topics

New CPT Codes for Cardiac CT, Imaging Appear for 2010

Plus: Say goodbye to two perfusion codes. If you’ve ever wondered whether Medicare actually pays attention to CPT’s Category III codes, the AMA offers an answer with the release of the new codes included in CPT 2010. First and foremost, CPT will delete the Category III cardiac computed tomography (CT) imaging codes 0144T-0151T and replace them with [...] Related articles:

  1. Cardiac Anesthesia Workshop: Coding for TEE Discover if your transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) anesthesia is payable...
  2. 2010 CPT Category II & III Codes You Might Miss Yes, our CPT books are fountains of knowledge, but...
  3. Break Down Outpatient ESRD Into These G-Code Mirroring Cat I Codes We tell you the inpatient dialysis codes that trigger...

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October 27, 2009
CPT / modifier 22 / Provider News

Surgical Coding Update: 21930, 21931 & More Debut for CPT 2010

Tumor excision codes get specific. Will surgical oncology practices take a reimbursement hit? We’re starting to learn what new CPT codes we’ll be using come January 1, 2010. Coding News will keep you posted over the coming weeks, along with analysis from coding experts around the country so that you know what to expect for your practice’s [...] Related articles:

  1. Pain Management Coding Update: Facet Joint Injection CPT Changes for 2010Pain management, anesthesia, orthopedic, physiatry & neurology coders get ready...
  2. 141 New ICD-9 Codes Debut for 2010 Like a passel of fresh-faced debutantes, the new ICD-9...
  3. Surgical Coding: Modifiers 58, 78, and 79SURGICAL MODIFIER CHOICES Surgery Modifier Choices are Key to Surgery...

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October 27, 2009
Coder's Cranium

ASC Coding Education: Knee Diagnoses & Procedures

Choose this ICD-9 code if you see ‘jumper’s knee’ in the orthopedic surgeon’s note. Here’s a handy introduction to common ICD-9 codes related to the knee, along with examples of CPT codes for procedures physicians perform to treat knee diagnoses. Chondromalacia Patella Chondromalacia patella (717.7) is also known as “patellofemoral syndrome” or “runner’s knee.” This condition results when [...] Related articles:

  1. Orthopedic Coding Quick Start Guide: ASC Shoulder ProceduresShoulder ICD-9 and CPT codes you’ll most likely see in...
  2. Test Yourself: Total Knee Replacement (TKR) Coding Can you tackle an op note like this one...
  3. Anesthesia Coding Education: Sciatic Nerve Block & Same-Day General AnesthesiaQuestion: My anesthesiologist performed a sciatic nerve block for a...

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October 17, 2009
Hot Coding Topics / modifier 54 / modifier 57

Fracture Care Coding: Mark Manipulation, Make $100+ More Per Encounter

No maybes here: Answer this question wrong and you will code incorrectly. When your ED physician performs fracture care for a patient, be ready to pounce on evidence of manipulation, as CPT often breaks fracture care codes along the manipulation line. The $kinny: Let’s say the physician performs closed treatment on a fractured collarbone; if she uses [...] Related articles:

  1. How Do I Code This Multiple Fracture Accident Patient?Question: A 30-year-old female presents to a rural ED with...
  2. Sort Out This ER, Then Assumed Care ScenarioQuestion: My orthopedist treated a patient who was first seen...
  3. Weber B Fracture Repair: 27786, 27788 or 27792?Question: Which CPT and ICD-9 codes should we report when...

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October 12, 2009