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JOURNAL Brought to you by the Medical Management Institute | Dec 2013/ Jan 2014 | Issue 1 Volume 5
Highlights MMI News Updates CMS News Updates Free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn Every Month Spotlight on Modifier 76 2014 Book Deals MMI Check-Up for ICD-10 Making Changes at Your Medical Practice HIPAA Compliance Courses December/January Crossword Puzzle
mmi•updates Free Anatomy & Terminology Next Week
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MMI News Updates
CMS News Updates Free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn Every Month Spotlight on Modifier 76 2014 Book Deals MMI Check-Up for ICD-10 Making Changes at Your Medical Practice HIPAA Compliance Courses Dec/January Crossword Puzzle
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All next week, January 20-24th, the Anatomy & Terminology course will be free when purchased with any certification training program! The Anatomy & Terminology course is completely online & self-paced and is worth 12 AAPC & ARHCP approved CEUs (normally priced at $449). This course is a pre-requisite to the RMC, CPC, RMA, & RMB certification training programs. For details on the time-sensitive promotion visit mmiclasses.com/free-anatomy. 2014 Books Are Available Stock up on the 2014 coding books in advance for great savings. The ICD-10-CM Draft Set is $99.95, 3 pack bundle deals (CPT®, ICD-9, HCPCS II) are $279, and 2 pack bundle deals are only $199. Click here for details on pricing and how to order or call 866-892-2765. Free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn Every Month! MMI is very proud to be hosting a free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn every month for our valued members & alumna, worth 2 ARHCP/MMI CEUs (pending approval from other organizations). The events will be presented by Kathy Dyson, the Learning Director for MMI, and she will speak on “ICD-10: Practices in Peril”, give a brief history of ICD-10, the structure of ICD-10 codes, as well as changes you need to know about, the documentation you will need, and how to transition your practice. For details on locations, dates, and how to RSVP you can visit mmi-classes.com/live-ICD10. 2014 RMC Update Exam is Available Attention RMC Members! The 2014 RMC Update Exam is now available. If you have a renewal date coming up THIS year, you will need to take this exam. For the exam, you will need to reference your 2014 coding books (mainly the CPT®) along with the November 2013 MBJ. To sign up visit mmi-classes.com/products/rmcrenewal.
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cms•updates Direct Resource: www.cms.gov HOME & COMMUNITY BASED SERVICES
January 10, 2014 - The final rule addresses several sections of Medicaid law under which states may use federal Medicaid funds to pay for home and community-based services (HCBS). The rule supports enhanced quality in HCBS programs, adds protections for individuals receiving services. In addition, this rule reflects CMS’ intent to ensure that individuals receiving services and supports through Medicaid’s HCBS programs have full access to the benefits of community living and are able to receive services in the most integrated setting. CMS & MD ANNOUNCE J O I N T I N I T I AT I V E
January 10, 2014 - The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the state of Maryland jointly announced a new initiative to modernize Maryland’s unique all-payer ratesetting system for hospital services aimed at improving patient health and reducing costs. This initiative will replace Maryland’s 36-year-old Medicare waiver to allow the state to adopt new policies that reduce per capita hospital expenditures and improve health outcomes as encouraged by the Affordable Care Act. Under this model, Medicare is estimated to save at least $330 million over the next five years. C M S C O M B AT M E D I C A R E PA R T D
January 6, 2014 - Prescription drug abuse is a serious and growing problem nationwide. Unfortunately, the Medicare Part D prescription drug program (Part D) is not immune from the abuses associated with this nationwide epidemic. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) takes this problem seriously and is taking steps to protect Medicare beneficiaries and the
Medicare Trust fund from the harm and damaging effects associated with prescription drug abuse. A D M I N I S T R AT I O N S I M P L I F I C AT I O N
December 31, 2013- The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a proposed rule, entitled “Administrative Simplification: Certification of Compliance for Health Plans.” This rule proposes that controlling health plans (CHPs) must submit certain information and documentation that d e m o n s t r a t e s compliance with the adopted standards and operating rules for three electronic transactions: eligibility for a health plan, health care claim status, and health care electronic funds transfers (EFT) and remittance advice. This proposed rule would also establish penalty fees for a CHP that fails to comply with the certification of compliance requirements. 2 3 S TAT E S R E C E I V E O V E R $ 3 0 7 M I L L I O N
December 30, 2013 -The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded over $307 million in performance bonuses to 23 states for improving access to children’s health coverage and successfully enrolling eligible children in Medicaid. The performance bonuses were authorized under the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA), one of the first pieces of legislation signed into law by President Obama. This is the fifth and final year of performance bonus awards.
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Every Month through MMI
Join MMI for a free lunch & ICD-10 education!
The Medical Management Institute • 866-892-2765 • www.mmiclasses.com • RSVP@mmiclasses.com
December/January’s
MMI Check-Up for ICD-10 ICD-10 Exercises & Scenarios | Monthly Feature MMI will provide coding exercises and scenarios each month in the MBJ so that you can verify your progress in understanding and coding ICD-10. You will need an ICD-10 manual to complete the exercise, so if you have not already, sign up for our ICD-10 curriculum. MMI’s ICD-10 Check-Ups are posted on the MMI Blog as well! Scenario 1
Answers:
Mike is a 36-year-old patient of Dr. Brice. Mike told Dr. Brice that for the past three days he has been coughing constantly. When he takes a deep breath, slight soreness is felt in his chest. He has also been coughing up some yellow-greenish colored mucus, and has experieinced two days of diarrhea. Dr. Brice checked all vital signs- there is no problem with heart, but he does hear wheezing in the right lung. From his assessment, Dr. Brice prescribes Mike with antibiotics for his acute viral bronchitis and cough. He also goes over some dietary instructions to assist with the diarrhea. The expanded visit included problem focused history, and the examination lasted 20 minutes. What procedure and diagnoses would you use to code this encounter?
Coding Practice Code the following diagnoses in ICD-10:
1. Iron-‐de*iciency anemia due to poor diet 2. Smoker’s Cough 3. Meningitis due to ECHO virus 4. Acute laryngitis with airway obstruction 5. Snoring 6. Left elbow pain 7. Irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea 8. Hernia with gangrene 9. Migraine headache
Scenario 1: Procedure: 99213 Diagnosis: J21.9 - Acute Bronchiolitis, R05 Cough, R19.7- Diarrhea Since Mike is already a patient of Dr. Brice, the evaluation and management (E/M) service may be reported with an established patient or other outpatient E/M code, remembering 2 or 3 of the key components must be met: history, physical examination, and medical decision-making. Dr. Brice’s assessment of Mike is of low to moderate severity. The face-to-face encounter is at least 15 minutes. Coding E/M as 99213 would be accurate. For the diagnoses, Mike’s chief complaint was coughing, the phlegm, and diarrhea. For the diagnoses, Dr. Brice determined Mike has acute viral bronchitis along with cough and diarrhea. So all of the diagnoses can be coded as J21.9, R05, R19.7 Coding Practice 1. D50.8 - Iron deficiency anemia due to poor diet 2. J41.0 - Smoker’s cough 3. A87.0 - Echovirus meningitis 4. J05.0 - Acute obstructive laryngitis 5. R06.83 - Snoring 6. M25.522 - Pain in joint - left elbow 7. K58.0 - Irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea 8. K46.1 - Unspecified abdominal hernia with gangrene 9. G43.909 - Migraine, unspecified, not intractable, without status migrainosus 10. R14.0 - Abdominal distensions (gaseous)
10. Stomach bloating due to gaseous
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SPOTLIGHT ON MODIFIER 76 Modifier of the Month | Monthly Feature
Each month in the MBJ, we will feature a modifier and discuss the appropriate use. So far we have reviewed Modifiers 24, 25, 26 & 57, so this month we will take a look at Modifier 76. First let’s look at the definition and use.
Modifier 76 Modifier 76 is use to report a “repeat procedure or service by the same physician or other qualified health care professional.” Under certain medically necessary situation, a physician may perform a repeat procedure or service on the same patient, on the same day. The procedure or service was repeated subsequent to the original service performed and can be reported with modifier 76. This modifier indicates to the payer that this is not a duplicate bill charge, but rather, that the same procedure was performed twice. The key point to remember is that both the original and the repeat must be of the exact same CPT code.
Use of Modifier 57 The first (original) service should be reported with the usual guidelines. The (repeat) subsequent service(s) should then be reported on the next line appending a 76 modifier to the procedure code. The modifier should not be
reported on Evaluation and Management services (E/M).
Example
A physician orders an EKG 93000 (routine EKG with at least 12 leads; with interpretation and report). It is performed at 10:00 a.m. It is repeated at 2:00 p.m. Later, the patient's condition requires a third EKG 93000, the same physician orders it and it is repeated at 8:00 p.m. • This is billed as 93000, one unit (first line) and 93000-76, two units (next line). It is imperative the patient’s medical records always clearly document the medical necessity of the performing repeat procedures. If a service is repeated more than once, a brief description can be provided in the narrative field of the claim form (box 19 of CMS claim form) to support the medical necessity of the repeat services. Depending on their guidelines, some payers and Medicare carriers may view modifier 76 differently and limit its use to service rendered on same day. Those payers that have restrictions on the reporting of modifier 76 often reimburse at a multiple procedure reduction rate (eg, by 30 or 50 percent) on the subsequent repeat procedure. • Note: Remember the “need to know basis”: Medical records, notes, or other supporting documentation should not be attached to the claim unless specifically required and/or requested by the Company. Only submit the requested information on the procedure that is being requested.
Appropriate Usage of Modifier 76 • Service must be performed by the same physician • May be used on procedures or diagnostic tests • On procedures that is not quantity billed • Repeat procedure MUST be of same procedure code • It is generally intended in reporting, when 6
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SPOTLIGHT ON MODIFIER 76
‣ Line two: 71020-26 Radiologic examination, chest, two views, frontal and lateral ‣ Line three: 71020-76-26 Radiologic examination, chest, two views, frontal and lateral, repeat procedure by same physician Example 2: A radiation oncologist performs a twice-a-day (BID) Brachytherapy radiation treatment on a cancer patient. The High-dose radiation (HDR) was administered two fractions per day, for 5 days for a total 10 treatments. The first dose to the primary tumor was delivered on Monday- once at 8:15am and then again at 3:15pm, following the same delivering dose schedule for the rest of the next 4 days.
appropriate on: ‣ Surgical (10021-‐69990) ‣ Radiological procedures (70010-‐79999) ‣ Diagnostic services (90281-‐99199) ‣ Home health (99500-‐99607) When to Not Use Modifier 76 Do not use modi*ier 76 to report a planned or anticipated procedure or if the procedure is ordered by a different physician (modi*ier 77) on the same day.
• From this case scenario, the biller can bill both treatments (am/pm) per day for 5 days of radiation treatment: ‣ Monday: Line one: 77785 x 1 unit, Line two: 77785-76 x 1 unit ‣ Tuesday: Line one: 77785 x 1 unit, Line two: 77785-76 x 1 unit ‣ Wednesday: Line one: 77785 x 1 unit, Line two: 77785-76 x 1 unit ‣ Thursday: Line one: 77785 x 1 unit, Line two: 77785-76 x 1 unit ‣ Friday: Line one: 77785 x 1 unit, Line two: 77785-76 x 1 unit
Let’s put Modifier 76 to use: Example 1: In the emergency room, the attending physician inserts a chest tube into an injured patient. A chest x-ray is done prior to placement of the chest tube before and after placement to verify the position of the chest tube at the same operative procedure. • From the above case, along with the insertion of the chest tube, the x-ray can be billed twice for the before and after insertion placement. The codes to report on the claim form are:
• From the example above, treatment was done AM and PM. A narrative can be placed in box 19 of the claim form to indicate “CPT 77785 rendered in AM and PM treatment” to let the payers know that this procedure was done twice on the same day. By knowing your top payer guidelines and the appropriate use of modifiers, you will maximize reimbursement payments for your practice. We will cover modifier 77 (repeat procedure, different physician) in next month’s MBJ.
‣ Line one: 32551
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Making Changes at Your Medical Practice, Overcoming Resistance By Judy Capko, pulled from PhysicianPractice.com In the coming year, physicians and managers can anticipate even tighter reigns on future reimbursement, and may realize they will be expected to accomplish more with fewer resources. One of the things they can do is streamline their operational processes — however, that means change, which is not always welcomed. There are many people who don't like dealing with change. It encroaches on the way they do things and brings uncertainty — not knowing if the outcome will really make things better for them. The truth is, without everyone's cooperation in your practice, change results can be compromised. Here are a few steps you can take to avoid "unwitting or calculated sabotage" as you navigate your way through operational changes at your practice.
1. Think strategically Analyze the reason change is necessary. What is happening internally or externally that requires the change? What will happen if you don't make
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change? Just as importantly, it is essential to determine how your practice and the people in it will be affected by the change, and how they will deal with potential barriers that might threaten results. Beyond this, agree on your ultimate objective and decide how you will measure results. These are important strategic elements for monitoring progress and ensuring that the appropriate level of accountability exists.
2. Examine the barriers to change Analyze everyone's needs and understand their perceptions. After all, staff will be asking "WIIFM: What's in it for me?" It's management's job to paint a picture of hope and improvement. The barriers begin with and are fueled by fear — fear of the unknown and fear that the results will not be good, in fact fear that (in the end) things might actually be worse. People feel a loss of control when faced with change; worry that they will not be heard; and concern that change will make their work more difficult to accomplish.
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3. Find a champion Creating enthusiasm for change and getting everyone on board is no small task. Your best way to accomplish this is to identify the person inside your practice who is most appropriate to "lead the charge" for change — to be your champion for this cause. There are a few key requirements: First of all, this person must feel passionate about the changes you plan to implement and be willing to be a key player in guiding the change process. This individual will be instrumental to your success and needs to be someone that will be closely affected by the change. For example, if you are going to centralize scheduling and it requires all the physicians to agree, then seek the physician who is the mostly likely to have a vision for how he will benefit from the change — improved access for patients, fewer missed appointments, fewer complaints, and getting out of the office on time each night.
distorted. Also, communicate what kind of training and support staff will receive during the process. In the end it's making everyone feeling valued and reassured that their feedback will be heard. Change is not about personal gain, it's about gain for the entire practice. Keep everyone focused on this, celebrate steps of progress along the way and show appreciation for a job well done. To read the original article you can visit http:// bit.ly/19xBDS5. Judy Capko is the founder of Capko & Morgan, a healthcare consulting firm. She is located in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Judy is the author of "Secrets of the Best-Run Practices," "Take Back Time," and coauthor of "The Patient-Centered Payoff." Capko is a national healthcare speaker may reached at judy@capko.com.
Your champion, guided by management's skill and talent, will need to sell the vision to everyone involved in the change process. When changes result in success for your champion, the other physicians will feel more confident and will come on board.
4. Introduce and manage change well Approaching change and getting acceptance not only requires overcoming barriers, but also managing cultural and political challenges within the practice team. Management must meet individually with staff that are most vocal about sabotaging efforts to implement operational changes. Open the doors of communication and discuss perceived resistance and issues that concern each of them. It may require some real negotiating finesse to overcome these hurdles, but without doing so, you can expect problems with introducing and managing change. It should to be a two-way dialogue, so that you have a clear understanding of how they feel and they understand what you expect of them. When you are ready to implement change, call an orientation meeting. Prepare for the meeting with a plan that sells your vision. You want everyone to hear the message the same way, at the same time. Remember the grapevine has no mercy and can be easily misinterpreted or
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DECEMBER/JANUARY CROSSWORD We hope you enjoyed this issue‌ now test your knowledge!
Across 1. How many HIPAA training options does MMI offer? 2. CMS & this state announced a new initiative to modernize their unique all-payer rate-setting system for hospital services aimed at improving patient health and reducing costs. 3. Where will the free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn be held on February 21, 2014? 4. R06.83 is the ICD-10 code for what diagnoses?
Down 1. What does CHP stand for? 2. Which 2013 issue of the MBJ will you need to reference for the 2014 RMC Update Exam? 3. Who will host the free ICD-10 Lunch & Learn each month through MMI? 4. Modifier 76 is used to report a repeat procedure or service by ____ _______ or other qualified health care professional.
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THE MEDICAL BUSINESS JOURNAL BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE MEDICAL MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE The Medical Business Journal is a monthly source of up-to-date information on all issues affecting the healthcare industry. Its content ranges from medical coding and billing to healthcare reform legislature and beyond. The MBJ is not affiliated in any way with the Department of Health and Human Services, Medicare, or the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services, and is not a substitute for individualized expert assistance. The CPTÂŽ codes, descriptors, and modifiers are copyrighted by the American Medical Association. For more information, please call MMI at 866-892-2765.
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October, Issue 1, Vol 5
Editor in Chief Carleigh Benscoter
Contributors Kathy Dyson Loan Tran Carleigh Benscoter
Layout & Design Carleigh Benscoter
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Link List [Issue 1, Vol 5] 2014 Books: http://www.mmi-classes.com/blogs/mmi/9948897-day-of-thanks-on-november-19th-save-the-date, 2014 ICD-10 Official Draft Set: http://www.mmi-classes.com/collections/2014-medical-coding-books/products/2014-icd-10draft, ICD-10 Online Certification Training: http://www.mmi-classes.com/pages/icd-10-online-certification-training, ICD-10 Blog: http://www.mmi-classes.com/blogs/mmi-check-up-for-icd-10, Physician Practice Blog: http:// www.physicianspractice.com/staff/making-changes-your-medical-practice-overcoming-resistance? utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter,