Part B Insider (Multispecialty) Coding Alert
CMS Approves CLIA-Waived Status for 21 Lab Tests -- Just Remember to Use Modifier QW
Plus: Mass immunization season is upon us -- CMS outlines the facts you need to know to start reporting vaccinations
According to Transmittal 1594, CMS will now consider 21 additional tests CLIA-waived. You'll have to append modifier QW (CLIA-waived test) to these codes, which include the following, among others:
• 83520 -- Immunoassay, analyte, quantitative; not otherwise specified
• 87880 -- Infectious agent detection by immunoassay with direct optical observation; Streptococcus, group A
• 89300 -- Semen analysis; presence and/or motility of sperm including Huhner test (post coital)
To read the full list of newly-approved CLIA-waived tests, visit the CMS Web site at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/transmittals/downloads/R1594CP.pdf.
In other news ...
• Providers who would like to brush up on vaccination billing procedures before the season starts can consult two new transmittals from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
The agency outlines the difference between mass immunization roster billers and centralized billers, among other specifics, in Aug. 15 Transmittal No. 366 (CR 6121).
Reminder: Beneficiaries do not need to have a physician's order or supervision to receive a Medicare-covered vaccination, points out the transmittal, which you can find at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/transmittals/downloads/R366OTN.pdf. A related MLN Matters article is at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MLNMattersArticles/downloads/MM6121.pdf.
And CMS spells out vaccination billing changes to the Medicare Claims Processing Manual in a 56-page Sept. 5 transmittal.
For example: Roster bills do not require a National Provider Identifier (NPI), CMS says in Transmittal No. 1586 (CR 6079), located at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/transmittals/downloads/R1586CP.pdf.
Part B Insider (Multispecialty) Coding Alert
- CCI:
No Modifier Will Separate Edit Bundling 92502 Into Sinus Codes
Effective Oct. 1, CCI institutes thousands of edits that change modifier status, and delete and [...] - CCI:
CCI Bundles Moderate Sedation Into Scores of Surgery Codes
Plus: The new version of CCI also swaps several code pairsCCI Version 14.3 blasts any ambiguity [...] - Compliance:
OIG Finds 63-Percent Error Rate on Facet Joint Injections -- Here's How to Avoid Problems
Hint: Bilateral injection errors accounted for scores of issuesAccording to a Sept. 17 OIG report, practices [...] - Part B Mythbuster:
What Constitutes 'Lavage?' It May Be More Than You Think
What to watch to avoid a $500 (or more) mistakeMyth: If your surgeon must return a patient [...] - Reader Question:
Meet These Requirements to Qualify As An Independent Audiologist
Starting Oct. 1, audiologists must be licensed in states that offer licensingQuestion: I recall reading [...] - Halt Knee-Related Injection Rejections With 3 Tips
Code 20610 might always need a modifier for Medicare payIf denials for trigger point and [...] - Physician Notes:
CMS Approves CLIA-Waived Status for 21 Lab Tests -- Just Remember to Use Modifier QW
Plus: Mass immunization season is upon us -- CMS outlines the facts you need to know [...]
