ED Coding and Reimbursement Alert

These 3 scenarios all look like procedures, but 2 are actually E/Ms.Sometimes, encounter notes will play tricks on you in the ED: patients reporting with certain injuries might require services equaling a procedure code ... though some only require an E/M service.Sidestep coding quicksand and deliver the right claim on time, every time, with this expert input on walking the E/Mprocedure line in the following three scenarios.Myth 1: Wound Repair Wraps Up Laceration Fix Code Patients reporting to the ED with lacerations will typically require laceration repair -- though the service might not reach the procedure level, confirms Kenny Engel, CPC, CHC, ACS-EM, CCP, chief compliance officer with Martin Gottlieb Associates in Jacksonville, Fla.You might be able to report a simple repair according to the length and body area using 12001-12018 (Simple repair of superficial wounds of ...), says Engel. However, "the scenario where you would not code a simple closure, [...]