As the activity around the forthcoming 2020 election period is heating up, and with it, talk of “Medicare-For-All” options, I thought I’d begin my contribution to the Inside Angle blog […]

For those of us facing “maturity,” when we were growing up the year 2020 seemed an impossibly exotic thing, the stuff of science fiction. Time has flown like a freaking […]

In the morning, while getting ready for work, I listen to the radio. It’s the same program I’ve listened to for over 20 years. Normally, I “tune out” when commercials […]

If there is a theme to this year’s proposed MS-DRG changes in the IPPS proposed rule, it is “ICD-10 Data.” Now that two years’ worth of ICD-10 coded MedPAR data […]

In March, the American Medical Association (AMA) published their CPT Editorial Summary of Panel Action February 2019.  The summary warns that final CPT codes and descriptors are still in draft […]

Oh great—more new modifiers! If you’re like me, I read my CMS updates and focus on what needs to be managed based on regulatory deadlines. Back in 2016, I read […]

While the intent of MIPS is important with its end goal of improved quality and patient care, the program’s content can be challenging for coders, billers and providers. The data […]

In my last blog, I recommended checking out excerpts from the March ICD-10 Coordination and Maintenance meeting. Those excerpts were written proposals for ICD-10 codes describing SDOH (social determinants of […]

The March 19, 2019 letter from Seema Verma, CMS Administrator, to Charles Grassley (Chairman of the Committee on finance) assures that CMS is once again analyzing claims data to determine […]

For several years now we’ve had four -X modifiers, generally presented as -X (E, P, S, U) which can be used instead of the -59 modifier to unbundle procedure codes […]

According to a March 7, 2019 article in Modern Healthcare, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has decided to recommend that HHS revisit the national ED coding rules by 2022, citing […]

On January 17, 2019, CMS issued Transmittal 4204, which states HCPCS Q4122-Dermacell per square centimeter can be assigned either revenue code (RC) 278-Implant or RC 636-Drugs requiring detailed coding. I […]