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Surgery bundling in CPT 2011 sets stage for significant pay cuts

10/21/2010

You'll face a wide-ranging series of changes to surgery coding under CPT 2011, an exclusive Part B News analysis shows. These changes bundle previously separate codes into one code and are likely to reduce payments for cardiologists, orthopedic surgeons, general surgeons and neurosurgeons, experts believe.

CPT 2011 adds new observation codes but sets stage for pay cuts with bundling

10/21/2010

You'll find three new E/M codes in your 2011 CPT book, along with significant bundling of surgical codes likely to negatively impact cardiology and surgery practices, experts tell Part B News. Some codes, new and revised, appear out of sequence, a tactic the AMA began in the 2010 CPT book. The three new E/M codes, for "subsequent observation care," are resequenced.

5 documentation shortcuts that raise audit risk and how to fix them

10/21/2010

Your doctors might think documentation shortcuts save time and boost efficiency, but they could also raise your practice's audit risk when government inspectors come knocking, experts tell Part B News. E/M documentation that looks similar or identical for different patient encounters will be scrutinized by the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) starting next year.

Terminate provider reassignment when physicians or NPPs leave

10/21/2010

Remember to update your enrollment records when a physician or non-physician practitioner (NPP) leaves your group to protect your practice against possible fraud or false accusations of improper billing. The provider's National Provider Identifier (NPI) number will still be attached to your group's Provider Transaction Account Number (PTAN).

E-prescribers earned $2,612 per doc in 2009; still time to get 2010 bonuses

10/21/2010

You still have time to earn 2010 bonuses under CMS's E-prescribing Incentive Program. Qualifying for the bonus before 2010 ends could mean an extra $2,612 for every physician or non-physician practitioner (NPP) at your practice. That's the average amount your peers earned in 2009, according to CMS statistics.

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