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Steady declines mark osteoporosis-testing code 77080 among most specialties

04/04/2016

Practices have witnessed a sharp decline in reimbursement for bone mass measurement code 77080 (Bone density measurement using dedicated X-ray machine) over the past decade, and that pay cut appears to have led to an overall decrease in service utilization.

5-year enrollees: Check revalidation list if your notification hasn’t arrived

03/28/2016

by: Roy Edroso

If your revalidation of Medicare enrollment is coming up, don’t rely solely on your Medicare administrative contractor (MAC) to notify you. Check CMS’ new Lookup Tool.

‘Ransomware’ case a chilling reminder of need for data security at practices

03/28/2016

by: Scott Kraft

Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center’s recent decision to pay a $17,000 ransom in Bitcoin currency to regain access to its electronic health record (EHR) system from hackers is a nightmare scenario to any health care organization storing patient protected health information (PHI) online.

New diabetes manifestation codes among 2,670 proposed ICD-10 changes

03/28/2016

by: Part B News staff

Coders got their first look March 22 at the 2,670 proposed ICD-10-CM code changes that take effect Oct. 1, 2016, when they were issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in a text file on its website. The final code changes will be posted on the CDC’s website later this year.

Smoking cessation services a missed opportunity for many practices

03/28/2016

by: Scott Kraft with additional reporting by Julia Kyles, CPC

Failing to document time spent on smoking cessation and providing details of the nature of the cessation services could be costing practices money for work the physicians are often doing anyway, experts tell Part B News.

Ensure coding, charge capture are not hampered by miscues in your EHR

03/28/2016

by: Richard Scott

Don’t lose revenue when you code through your electronic health record (EHR) because you might be billing for lower-level E/M services than warranted and losing out on payment for some ancillary services altogether.

Practice burglary is not an automatic HIPAA breach; look for breach evidence

03/28/2016

by: Roy Edroso

Question: If my practice is burglarized, is that automatically a security breach under HIPAA that must be reported?

Pace of increase in smoking cessation visits slows; denials for visits up

03/28/2016

by: Roy Edroso

New CCI edit changes that allow tobacco use counseling services 99406 and 99407 to be reported on the same day as initial observation or inpatient visits without a modifier may boost use of those codes.

New Part B drug pay models intended to boost quality would test providers

03/21/2016

by: Julia Kyles

The agency noted that to gather a robust enough data set and get valid results, they need every provider to participate, Warren says. With the exception of Maryland, the test will randomly sort all primary care service areas (PCSAs, clusters of ZIP codes that reflect the delivery of primary care) into one arm of the test.

Prepare yourself and your staff for law enforcement searches

03/21/2016

by: Roy Edroso

Make sure everyone at your practice knows the drill in the event that law enforcement conducts an impromptu search and seizure of your files.

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