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Orthopedic Coding Quick Start Guide: ASC Shoulder Procedures

Shoulder ICD-9 and CPT codes you’ll most likely see in the orthopedic ASC setting — explained.
If you’re an orthopedic coder, you don’t have to shoulder your shoulder coding burdens alone. We’ve rounded up a handy reference list of shoulder problems (along with sample procedures that fix them) that you’ll come across in an ambulatory surgical […]

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Plastic Surgery Coder’s Anatomy: The Face

We’ve got the pictures and definitions that help you face those op reports.
If want to be a plastic surgery coder, you will see diagnosis and procedure codes related to the following structures of the face:
Muscles
Masseter—Muscle of the posterior cheek that closes the jaw.
Mentalis—Facial muscle of the chin.
Nasalis—This compound muscle of the nose dilates the nostrils.
Orbicularis […]

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Orthopedic Coder’s Anatomy: The Hip

These key terms make coding for hip procedures easier and more accurate.
If you think your hip is that thing jutting out at you in the mirror, your nomenclature needs a rehaul to ensure you’re nailing the correct codes. Coding for hip fractures and other procedures is easier when the coder is hip to the anatomy […]

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RAC Fact: Watch Out For Medicare’s Once-in-a-Lifetime Services

G0389 & the IPPE codes may be potential RAC targets
If you’ve been sweating it out, waiting for the recovery audit contractors (RACs) to announce where they’ll be focusing their audit efforts, you may or may not be relieved to know two RAC contractors have posted the areas they’ll have their eye on. More on that below …
Both lists include […]

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Don’t Mesh Up Your +57267 Coding

An ob-gyn doc with coding know-how tells us how to clean up our mesh claims.
Thinking of using +57267 (Insertion of mesh or other prosthesis for repair of pelvic floor defect …)? Given that +57267 can get you about $260 more, it’s a good move to consider for some claims — as long as you understand how […]

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‘Coding Error’ Fools 600 Vets Into Thinking They Had ALS

You already know correct coding is crucial, but here’s an unexpected reason to keep your coder’s cranium in top-notch condition.
Because of what the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs describes as a ‘coding error,’ 600 vets received letters that incorrectly led them to believe they had Lou Gehrig’s Disease, reports Associated Press. Reading something like that […]

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A Coder’s Guide to Health Care Reform

Quick way to show your practice you’re prepared for the unknowns ahead.
If anyone should be able to understand the complicated health care reform debate raging in Washington, it should be us coders and billers, right? After all, we’re closest to what’s at the center of the debate: dollars and cents.
So, if you’re like me, you’ve […]

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Think Your ASC Coding Skills Are Top-Notch? Take This Quiz

Some practices code for services performed in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) every day, while others are just getting started. To determine how much you know about coding and billing for ASC procedures, take this quick quiz. Then, click the ‘Full Article’ button to find out how you fared.
Question 1: Physician Performed A Non-Approved Service?
We recently learned that […]

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Solve Op Note Mysteries With This Fracture Glossary

CPT code selection is easier if you know your fracture anatomy. Illustrations included!
Fractures are defined as a disruption in the integrity of a living bone, bone marrow, periosteum, and adjacent soft tissues. Fractures occur when a bone cannot withstand outside forces, the integrity of the bone has been lost, and the bone structure fails. Fracture […]

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Coding Critical Care? What You Can’t Bill Separately

Although there are some physician services you can report separately from critical care, watch out. There are many services you can’t unbundle from critical care, including:

cardiac output measurements (93561, 93562)
chest x-rays (71010, 71015, 71020)
pulse oximetry (94760, 94761, 94762)
information data stored in computers (such as electrocardiograms, blood pressures, hematologic data, etc.)
blood gasses
gastric intubation (43752, 91105)
temporary transcutaneous […]

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