Cardiology Coding Alert

Question: Would it be more efficient, in terms of time and money, to review a percentage of documentation for accuracy instead of looking at every single service we bill for?

Alabama Subscriber

Answer: While looking at just some claims may save time in the short term, choosing not to review all charts and services for which you’re billing is courting trouble. Coding is persnickety work because one can’t really streamline it — knowing the guidelines inside and out can cut down on the amount of time it takes to narrow down code choices, but, ultimately, there is no way to totally eliminate the time you need to spend reviewing documentation.

Looking at a percentage of charts or services instead of all of them may be especially problematic if you have a lot of providers or a lot of turnover in staff, especially if you are working with new providers.

Such “timesaving” practices may end up costing a lot more time, money, and other resources during an audit.