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HHS cuts 20,000 employees, closes and combines departments

04/07/2025

HHS has announced the dismissal of 10,000 employees Department-wide, which takes the official number of cashiered employees so far to about 20,000.

Sharpen audio-only E/M visit documentation and coding

04/07/2025

by: Julia Kyles, CPC

Audio-only telehealth visits are still relevant thanks to another extension of audio-only services from Congress and private payer adoption. Below you will find two recent questions about how to report audio-only visits to private payers. Remember that telehealth coding is an evolving topic; you should watch the plans your practice accepts for new and revised guidance throughout the year.

Tackle risk assessments as cyberthreats continue to threaten

04/07/2025

by: Rebecca Herold, CDPSE, FIP, CISSP, CIPM, CIPP/US, CIPT, CISM, CISA, FLMI

Question: How should privacy officers approach risk assessments in the face of emerging cyberthreats like ransomware, and what best practices can be implemented to ensure both technical safeguards and workforce training align with HIPAA security requirements?

Follow diagnosis, sequencing for ICD-10-CM coding for diabetes

04/07/2025

by: DecisionHealth staff

As the prevalence of diabetes mellitus continues to grow, a keen understanding of the disease can help you keep track of how to code for it. From pre-diabetes to the increasingly common Type 2 diabetes, accurate coding will help keep your claims correct.

Chronic, transitional care management tied to big improper pay rates

04/07/2025

by: Richard Scott

Ensure your coding and documentation accuracy is on target for a host of E/M claims, including chronic care management (CCM) (99490) and transitional care management (TCM) (99495, 99496) that one of CMS’ auditing arms has flagged for improper payments.

Effective April 1, latest NCCI edit update focuses on new CPT codes

03/31/2025

by: Julia Kyles, CPC

The nearly 40,000 new National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) edits might seem overwhelming at first, but a divide-and-conquer strategy for the next update can make it more manageable.

After deported M.D. case, keep alien providers safe, especially if they travel

03/31/2025

by: Roy Edroso

The recent revocation of a physician’s visa, and her expulsion from the United States, spotlights a potential concern for practices employing providers who are foreign nationals.

Congress delays telehealth decision; services open through September

03/31/2025

by: Julia Kyles, CPC

You can continue to provide telehealth services to patients in all geographic locations until Sept. 30, 2025, thanks to another extension passed by Congress.

Follow a guide to code behavioral health encounters for stress

03/31/2025

by: Shelley C. Safian, PhD, MAOM/HIM/HI, RHIA, CCS-P, COC, CPC-I

With providers increasingly seeing patients for behavioral health conditions, it is vital to accurately chart and code the patient encounters. Use this guide to navigate CPT and ICD-10-CM coding for behavioral health care.

Advance care planning services maintain steady growth, denial rate

03/31/2025

by: Roy Edroso

After early years of fast growth followed by a significant slowdown during the COVID years, the rise of advance care planning (ACP) codes 99497 (first 30 mins) and 99498 (each additional 30 mins) has settled into a steady but healthy groove.

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