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Optometry Coding & Billing Alert

Make the Mo$t of Your Claims for Fundus Photography
At the very least, you want to avoid fraud charges. At most, you want to get every penny y... Read more
You Be the Expert:
Solve Chronic E/M Problems
Question: What risk level does a patient with glaucoma qualify for? I'm having trouble fig... Read more
Are You Ready to Join HIPAA's Electronic Billing Bandwagon?
Here's what you need to know about the electronic-filing final rule Good news: You've been... Read more
What's the Prognosis on Your Diagnosis Billing?
Find out how to get paid for diagnostic tests Billing for diagnostic tests can be very tri... Read more
Dispelling HIPAA's Most Persistent Myths
Don't fall for these common HIPAA misconceptions HIPAA misconceptions are everywhere, and ... Read more
Sample Document:
Authorization for E-Mail Correspondence
Susan Blair, MSJ, MBA, privacy officer at the University of Florida at Gainesville, shares... Read more
Reader Question:
A Map for Reporting Topography
Question: How should we correctly bill topography? We used 92499 (Unlisted ophthalmologica... Read more
Reader Question:
Ways to Collect Payment for Patients Who Have Died
Question: What's the most considerate way to collect payments for dead patients? We don't ... Read more
Coding Class:
76519 Under the Microscope - Follow CMS Regulations
One of the most commonly reported scan codes is 76519, but before you can calculate your e... Read more
Regulatory Update:
More Fee Cuts in Store for 2004
Optometrists: Projections for 2004 don't bode well for practices' reimbursements. CMS... Read more
You Be the Expert:
Reporting Noncovered Services to Medicare
Question: Our office is having a debate on how to handle services that are not covered by ... Read more
HIPAA Help Desk:
Avoid HIPAA Scams
The tell-tale signs of HIPAA scammers - and how to combat them From companies offering "ce... Read more
Ask a Billing Expert:
Get the Scoop on Medical Billing Certification
Question: I'm interested in boosting my marketability as a medical biller. Are there well-... Read more
Billing Basics:
'Finders, Keepers' Does Not Apply to Medical Billing
Here's how to correctly manage overpayments and credit balances Discovering an overpayment... Read more
Coding News You Can Use:
NCCI Edits All Around - Free of Charge
CMS posts Correct Coding Initiative edits on the Internet CMS has made it easier for ... Read more
Track Denials and Get on the Fast Track to Success
 Learn how denials are a 'treasure chest' of valuable information If you're not payin... Read more
ABCs of Audits:
Cover Your Bases With This E/M Audit Cover Sheet
Auditing downcoded evaluation and management claims can be a great way to ensure success o... Read more
Reader Question:
Ace In-Office A-Scan Coding
Question: What are the rules for coding the A-scans we perform in the office?New Jersey Su... Read more
Reader Question:
Document Your Way to High Eye Code Pay
Question: What are the documentation requirements for each level of the eye exam?Minnesota... Read more
Compliant Coding:
FAQs About Foreign-Body Sensation - Complain When Tests Yield Negative Results
When a patient comes in with a complaint but the suspected diagnosis comes out negative, w... Read more
Billing Basics:
Benchmark Your Way to Billing Bliss
Self-analysis can boost your bottom lineIf you're not paying attention to how the billing ... Read more
Ask a HIPAA Expert:
HIPAA Is Not Child's Play
Question: Can we fax absentee notes and forms authorizing the administration of medication... Read more
Compliant Coding:
Avoid 3 Common Diabetes Coding Mistakes
See your way clear of confusion and keep the feds from eyeing your practiceIf you fall dow... Read more
Ask a Billing Expert:
Banish Modifier -58 Confusion
Question: I'm not clear on the ways modifier -58 can be used, and I keep getting denials. ... Read more
Billing Basics:
Check Your Optometry Billing Skills
12 skills every billing manager should honeBeing a great billing manager means wearing man... Read more
Ask a HIPAA Expert:
Outgoing Communications and Confidentiality
Question: Does HIPAA require confidentiality statements on all e-mails and faxes?Idaho sub... Read more
Reader Questions:
Signs, Symptoms and E Codes - Oh My!
Question: A patient who had been the "master of ceremonies" at a family fireworks display ... Read more
Reader Questions:
Count the Days Before Reporting a New Patient
Question: When we use code 92004 (Ophthalmological services; comprehensive, new patient) f... Read more
Reader Questions:
Beware Free Phone Services
Question: One of our regular patients has moved to a nursing home and is unable to come to... Read more
You Be the Coder:
Using 99058 for Drop-Ins? Think Again
Question: We've recently been seeing so many drop-in appointments - referrals from primary... Read more
Compliant Coding:
Hone Your Optometry Coding Skills With These Eye Code FAQs
The extensive guidelines explaining how to properly use the general service codes, commonl... Read more
HIPAA Training Tips:
What Your Staff Must Know About Privacy Complaints
4 Essential Tips to Prepare Your Optometry Practice's Frontline Frontline staffers may be ... Read more
Billing Basics:
Include These 'Must-Haves' in Third-Party Contracts
Your third-party contracts could be limiting your reimbursement because of their ambiguous... Read more
Reimbursement Realities:
Get Active: Help Develop Your Carrier's Pachymetry LMRP
How one coder stopped denials. Even though some carriers have finalized local medical rev... Read more
Practice Management:
Audit Your Audits to Cover Your Bottom ... Line, That Is
If you treat billing and compliance audits like routine car inspections, you're missing th... Read more
Compliant Coding:
Think You Know How to Code Bilateral EO? Think Again
Don't boast about your coding skills before brushing up on your bilateral extended ophthal... Read more
Ask a HIPAA Expert:
Signed, Sealed, Delivered - It's Yours
Q: After a patient signs an authorization form for the release of protected health informa... Read more
Optometry News You Can Use:
Take the Money and Run
CMS has a Change of Heart on Proposed  'Mass Adjustment'Good news for your practice: ... Read more
Reader Question:
Glaucoma Follow-Ups Get Mixed Reviews
Question: When we see a confirmed glaucoma patient who needs to have follow-up appointmen... Read more
Reader Question:
Keep Physicians and Billers on the Same Page
Question: The optometrists and billers in my office can't seem to communicate with each o... Read more
Reader Question:
Don't Include Gonioscopy in E/M
Question: What components of a diagnostic glaucoma evaluation are separately billable fro... Read more
Reader Question:
Modifier -57 and Minor Procedures Don't Mix
Question: We use modifier -57 on separately identifiable E/M services during which the de... Read more
You Be the Coder:
Differentiate 375.15 and 370.21 by Condition
Question: Can 375.15 and 370.21 be used interchangeably? When would one be the preferred d... Read more
Get Paid for Both Exam and Foreign-Body Removal Through Documentation
When optometrists perform an eye exam to identify a foreign body and then remove the forei... Read more
Tame the HIPAA Beast
You can run, but you can't hide: The HIPAA deadlines are fast approaching. Don't let th... Read more
They're Not Interchangeable:
Distinguish Eye Codes From E/M Codes
Optometry coders have been both blessed and burdened with having two sets of CPT codes av... Read more
Billing Case Study:
Give Your Optometry Billing Collections a 6-Step Makeover
You may have to implement major improvement changes in your optometry practice to get the... Read more
Please Payers With Proper Low-Vision Therapy Coding
CMS'recent reiteration of the 2000 decision to cover rehabilitation services for Medicare ... Read more
Compliance Tips:
Optometrists,Now You Can Break The HIPAA Training Ice
Let's face it - a company memo requiring attendance at a HIPAAtraining seminar is not the... Read more
Ask a HIPAA Expert:
Don't Underestimate Your Privacy Notice
  Q: Is it sufficient to provide patients with only a URL link to our notice of priv... Read more
READER QUESTION:
Pursue Punctum Plug Answers
  Question: There is a big discrepancy in how to post punctal plugs properly, how to ... Read more
READER QUESTION:
Fight for Modifier -25 Payment
  Question: Whenever I use modifier -25 on an E/M service, with a procedure code on t... Read more
READER QUESTION:
Code Refractions and Visits
  Question: An established patient came into our office with glaucoma and received ... Read more
You Be the Coder:
Code an Incomplete Exam After Completion
  Question: I'm new to optometry coding and we have had a lot of patients come in for... Read more
Available Years:  2003