Medical Billing Blog: Section - Outsourcing
Archive of all Articles in the Outsourcing Section
This is the archive containing links to all articles written in the Outsourcing section of our blog.
Click any of the article links below to read the entire article or browse another section to the right to read articles on another subject.
Medical Billing for TB Screenings Made Easy
TB is in the news more and more and if you aren’t already seeing an increase in TB screenings, it’s likely your practice could experience it in the future. If you have a medical billing claim involving a patient that is at an increased risk for tuberculosis (TB) infection or is already having symptoms, a TB screening can be performed. If your practice runs these tests, be aware that in many cases, you can get reimbursed for the test as a medical necessity. When processing the medical billing for a TB skin test (86580) or blood test (86480) due to pulmonary TB symptoms or known TB exposure or risk. The …
RVUs Made Easy!
RVUs (relative value units) cause a lot of confusion in the medical billing world when you’re dealing with imaging procedures. It’s really just a matter of listing your services rendered logically then tallying them up from largest to smallest. For example, imaging codes aren’t discounted under the multiple-surgery payment reduction, so you typically list surgical codes first, in order by RVU, then the imaging codes. Your final coding report should look like this in order : * 35471 main coding * 36245 main coding * 75722-26-59 procedure with modifier * 75966-26. procedure with modifier Just remember to list the “heavier” codes at the top of your list and the lighter …
Audit Triggers to Watch Out For in 2008
In 2007 the OIG zeroed in on incident to billing claims. The HHS Office of Inspector General plans to issue a report on whether all the requirements for incident-to billing, including direct physician supervision are being followed. The OIG wants to know whether these services met the Medicare standards for medical necessity, documentation and quality of care, according to the OIG’s Work Plan. Other topics include: Other things that will be closely studied in the report include global periods and how they are determined in the medical billing. The agency will also be in the lookout for assignment violations where the physician has billed the patient more than Medicare co-pays …
To Bundle or Not to Bundle?
Critical Care Medical Billing Critical care is often confusing in the world of medical billing as a number of factors can come into play and whether you need to bundle services or not will also be an issue. Due to the nature of the critical care – notes are often made hurriedly and in many cases are incomplete and it is up to the medical billing professional to put it all together into a package that will be clear, concise and easy to read for the carrier to the services may be reimbursed. A good example is if a surgeon performed 64 minutes of critical care for a patient in …
Medicare Website Updated to Make Medical Billing Information Easier, Faster to Find
Due to high usage and informational usage by the medical billing community at large, the Medicare website has revamped certain areas to make their site easier to search and access. When a medical biller is looking up information, at the Medicare coverage site located at www.cms.hhs.gov/mcd/search.asp, it is now easier than ever to search for the coverage limitations and other required information that you need. The page is now set up to ask if the biller is asking for a local or national coverage determination to avoid confusion and misinformation that was previously disseminated as there are certain differences between local and national coverages for certain procedures. Medical billers may …
