This week's question is answered by Sean Weiss CPC, president of DecisionHealth Professional Services.

Q.   My doctor did a discography procedure with fluoroscopy. The discography was billed with code 62290 (4 levels). I need to know which code I use for the fluoroscopy and if it is billed for each level. 

Starting May 18, ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) must provide patients advance notice and information on their rights and any physician financial interest in the ASC before the date of a surgery. This means physicians rendering services at ASCs cannot perform procedures on the same day unless a patient previously received the required information.

Download this month's tool of the month from DecisionHealth Professional Services - an E/M Code Card - from Part B News' NEW Web site, www.partbnews.com.

You won't get paid by Medicare for computed tomography (CT) colonography screenings for colorectal cancer (CRC), CMS says in a coverage decision memo issued May 12.

This chart looks at how frequently specialties bill hospital observation codes (99218-99220) in comparison to inpatient care codes (99221-99223).

Have you done a Google search for your practice or physicians lately? You should. Popular Web sites like HealthGrades.com and RateMDs.com allow patients to anonymously rate your doctors and practice, and are defining the online image of thousands of practices nationwide. That image isn't always good, and you should be prepared to respond, experts say.

National Government Services (NGS) responded to your peers' comments regarding its local coverage determination (LCD) for vitamin D tests and says it will make changes. 

Learning that your Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) plans to eliminate coverage for a service your practice offers doesn't have to mean you start counting down the days until coverage ends. You can fight the change, experts tell Part B News.

So you've heard about Web sites that let patients anonymously rate your providers and write comments - good or bad - for the world to see (PBN 5/18/09). It's important to understand that each review site is different and some are designed to help practices reach out to patients, experts say.

Keeping your provider enrollment information current and up-to-date is always the best practice. But what happens when you realize you've forgotten to update enrollment after a move or change in address? Don't worry. CMS officials say they will not penalize you for failing to make an address change outside of its mandatory 30-day period to update an address. They won't retroactively revoke your billing privileges, said Jim Bossenmeyer, CMS's director of provider and supplier enrollment, during a CMS telephone conference April 30.