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Primary Care Coding Alert

ICD-9 2011:

Avoid H1N1, Fecal Incontinence Denials With 5th Digit Savvy

Published on Tue Jul 27, 2010

488.1x Cheat sheet makes fast work of snagging correct code.Don't let rumors of few ICD-9 changes in prep for ICD-10 blindside you to top family medicine changes. Without the scoop on expansion to the 488, 784, and 787 categories, denials for invalid codes will derail your claims delaying your payments.In ICD-9 2011, "Codes continue to become more and more specific necessitating a provider to document clearly and thoroughly to allow for selection of the most specific and accurate code," says Jennifer Swindle, RHIT, CCS-P, CEMC, CFPC, CCP-P, PCS, Director Coding & Compliance Division, PivotHealth, LLC.Good news: Updating your ICD-9 coding by the Oct. 1, 2010, effective date doesn't have to be a chore. Start using your new choices in no time flat following these guidelines.Look at Manifestation When Assigning "Swine Flu" DxThis fall on when a patient has H1N1 ("swine flu") pay attention to two details. The medical record will [...]
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