OASIS Alert

Education:

One Visit Or Two? The Wrong Answer May Cost You An Episode Payment

Question: When you make a skilled nursing visit to start an IV and then return three hours later to stop it, is this considered one visit or two?

Answer: This scenario can be considered two visits if you meet these two criteria--the service could not be performed in one visit and there was at least a two-hour break between the start and the stop of the IV, says fiscal intermediary Palmetto GBA.

Refer to the Palmetto GBA Home Health Training Manual, Section 6.1.1.5.2, the FI suggests.

Why it matters: If you don't understand this distinction, you could be billing unnecessary low utilization payment adjusted episodes (LUPAs) and losing money on each one.

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