Primary Care Coding Alert

Be careful: Some codes switch from acceptable to non-reportable.You now have more details to consider when coding for multiple vaccines during a single patient encounter, thanks to the Correct Coding Initiative. CCI edits (version 18.2) went into effect July 1, with vaccine administration being the biggest focus for family physicians. Watch Vaccine Coding So You Don't Double DipMutually exclusive edits under CCI identify code pairs that Medicare has determined are unlikely to be performed on the same patient on the same day. Because of this, the pairs carry an associated modifier indicator of "0," so coders won't try to break the edit and report both procedures. CCI 18.2 confirms that providers normally shouldn't administer certain vaccines to a patient on the same day. In the event of both vaccines being administered, you submit the procedure listed in Column 1 of the pair. Some of the vaccinations are the Column 1 [...]