A Message From Caral L. Edelberg, APC Alert's Consulting Editor

Dear Subscriber:

With the dramatic changes in outpatient coding and reimbursement that will come about with the implementation of ambulatory payment classifications (APC) under Medicares outpatient prospective payment system, 2000 promises to be a challenging year for coders and healthcare information professionals.

It is imperative that hospital coding departments and business offices begin now to fine tune their relationships with the outpatient departments that will be most affected by APCs. Most of us know where our weaknesses lay but may have postponed addressing them for a variety of reasons. In the world of APCs, we must work together to ensure timely, efficient coding and billing of all outpatient services.
We encourage your feedback as APC Alert grows and expands to meet the challenges facing us with the new outpatient prospective payment system.

Caral L. Edelberg, CPC, CCS-P
President, Medical Management Resources Inc.
Consulting Editor

- Published on 2000-04-01