slsommer
New
How should this scenario be coded: Patient is in the emergency room and an order is placed for an inpatient bed admission (or observation bed admission) but the patient remains in the emergency room for that admission stay. The hospital leaves the patient's place of service as the emergency room and the hospitalists are billing the inpatient cpt codes (i.e., 99221-99223, 99231-99233, 99238). So the patient is basically 'boarding' in the ER. Would it be accurate to bill the inpatient cpt codes when the patient remains in the emergency room?