From the day coders got their first glimpse at ICD-10 codes, the question went out in the land: “Will payers deny unspecified codes?” Recently, a … [Read more...]
Nicoletti Notes
This way for news!
Written for coders and medical professionals, Nicoletti Notes is a coding blog designed to keep you up-to-date with coding news and refreshers. Written by CodingIntel founder and coding expert Betsy Nicoletti.
Behavioral health coding compliance
Compliance Lessons from the OIG In March 2022, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report outlining errors one psychiatrist made in … [Read more...]
How old is your oldest CPT book
My, how CPT® has grown Thank you to everyone who completed our mission critical survey: how old is your oldest CPT® book and how many pages is it? … [Read more...]
2022 RVU table with national fee amounts
Looking for 2022 work RVUs? Wondering how much a new code pays? Look no farther. You can download the 2022 CMS national RVU table below. It does … [Read more...]
Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule for Calendar Year 2022
Conversion factor for 2022 released UPDATED CONVERSION FACTOR - $34.6062 Conversion factor decreased 3.75% from 2021 to 2022 CMS posts … [Read more...]
CMS’s 2022 shared or split services policy: document and report them correctly
Medical practices need to know CMS's 2022 split or shared services policy rules Shared or split services are Evaluation and Management (E/M) … [Read more...]
Why not bill all 99213 visits in an FQHC?
Why not bill all 99213 visits in an FQHC? (Hint: it's a good way of telling everyone that they were pretty easy visits.) Practitioners who work in … [Read more...]
What’s New in the Proposed Physician Fee Schedule Rule
Highlights of the 2022 Proposed Physician Fee Schedule rule Conversion factor decreases, sequester and PAYGO decreases still in place … [Read more...]
Consultation Codes Update
Consultation Codes Update, June 2022: The May 2022 CPT Assistant announced there are changes coming to E/M codes in 2023, including consultations. The … [Read more...]
Telecoding for telemedicine
Some coders were already working from home either full time or a few days a week. Many practices and health care facilities implemented remote coding … [Read more...]
CPT® codes (99421-99423) – and payment for – online digital evaluation and management (E/M) services
Be sure to read the telemedicine COVID-19 article for the latest information. There are CPT codes for online digital E/M services. CPT® … [Read more...]
E/M Changes in 2021 for 99202-99215 | Overview
It's here! New definitions for codes 99202--99215 Clinicians can select new and established patient visit based on time or medical decision making … [Read more...]
Medicare National Coverage Determination (NCD) for Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring (ABPM): CPT® and ICD-10 Coding
CMS released an NCD for ABPM on July 2, 2019. CMS has expanded the coverage for ABPM by allowing it for a greater range of BP measurements. Of course, … [Read more...]
New versus established patient visits
There are other articles on CodingIntel about the difference between new and established patients, and the rules haven’t changed, but that doesn’t … [Read more...]
Teaching Physician Rules – Evaluation and Management Services
CMS policy update: E/M services performed under the teaching physician rules Download this teaching physician rules quick reference sheet for a … [Read more...]
Anticoagulation Management
Currently, there are two sets of codes, three HCPCS codes and two CPT® codes. They aren’t defined exactly the same, and so take careful reading. The … [Read more...]
E/M frequency data for hospitalists
Hospitalists became a recognized specialty by CMS starting in 2017, and we now have frequency E/M data for the specialty. There are probably still … [Read more...]
Five urban legends about risk-adjusted diagnosis coding
Originally published on kevinmd.com When I talk to medical practices about Hierarchical Condition Category (HCCs) and risk-adjusted diagnosis … [Read more...]
NGS changing processing of same day NP/PA claims
Is NGS your MAC? Did you see their announcement that for claims processed on or after Sept 15, 2018, they will no longer deny claims for a second … [Read more...]
Diagnosis coding for screening colonoscopy
Some of you have read my article on coding for screening colonoscopy. The questions I get about that article are all related to diagnosis … [Read more...]