General Surgery Coding Alert

Use new codes with caution -- the OIG is watching. When patient observation lasts longer than normal, you'll have new options for reporting the middle day, starting Jan. 1, 2011. Check out this expert advice on how CPT 2011 additions will affect your coding for observation-care services next year. New Codes Offer Clarity "Historically there has been some confusion about how to report the middle day for those cases when an observation period transcends three calendar days. The introduction of the new CPT codes resolves that dilemma," explains Michael Granovsky, MD, CPC, FACEP, president of MRSI, in Woburn, Mass. "Although not the norm, there are situations where a patient is admitted to observation and remains in that status for three or more days," explains Jill Young, CPC, CEDC, CIMC, with Young Medical Consulting LLC in East Lansing, Mich. The CPT 2011 E/M section addresses these middle days, with new codes. The [...]