I code outpatient visits and this scenario came up the other day and I would like to see how others handle same situation.
Patient was taken to surgery (OPS) for a discogram, the surgeon actually started the procedure, but due to patient's size the needle was not long enough, so they aborted the procedure for a later date. This then turned into an OP visit for me to code. The procedure was charged, but I was told by the In-patient coder to get the charge taken off the account. Why can't the hospital charge for this procedure with a modifier? We only modify Medicare--this patient is not Medicare, how can the hospital get paid?
Patient was taken to surgery (OPS) for a discogram, the surgeon actually started the procedure, but due to patient's size the needle was not long enough, so they aborted the procedure for a later date. This then turned into an OP visit for me to code. The procedure was charged, but I was told by the In-patient coder to get the charge taken off the account. Why can't the hospital charge for this procedure with a modifier? We only modify Medicare--this patient is not Medicare, how can the hospital get paid?