Primary Care Coding Alert

For payers that accept 99241-99251,follow these requirements. The AMA tried to end the transfer of care versus consultation debate by adding new definitions and guidelines to CPT 2010. Opinion = Consult, Care Takeover = TOC CPT 2010 introduces a definition for transfer of care and revises the definition of a consultation (99241-99255). These guidelines are aimed at helping providers, coders, and auditors distinguish between the two. In the E/M Services Guidelines, the AMA defined transfer of care and attempted to distinguish a transfer from consultations, explained Peter A. Hollmann, MD, AMA CPT editorial panel vice chair, in "Evaluation and Management Services" at the AMA CPT and RBRVS 2010 Annual Symposium in Chicago. "A consult is ... when a physician or other appropriate source has requested an opinion, [and] a transfer of care is where the physician takes over patient care." In the Definitions of Commonly Used Terms, CPT 2010 expands [...]