Wiki Coding for a nutritionist - Hi I'm hoping someone can help me

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Pkirsch1

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Hi I'm hoping someone can help me out with coding for a nutritionist.

I need all the information I can get.

Are there any special rules?

Does the nutritionist need to be a doctor/RN/APRN?

What codes do we use for billing? Are they just office visits? Are there any other codes?

Bill incident to........

What credentials does this person need for billing different insurances?


Thanks for help!

Pam
 
Here's what I've been able to cobble together. Hopefully, someone more knowledgeable will piggyback on my reply:

1) must be a Registered Dietitian, licensed to practice in your state. Does not have to be an MD, FNP, PA, etc.

2) look at CPT codes 97802-804. Don't forget to change the units per every 15 minutes the patient is seen (for 97803 in particular)

3) for Medicare, look at G0270 (for diabetic or renal failure patients only. AFAIK, Medicare does not pay for obesity counseling). Our RD is also a Certified Diabetes Educator

4) when billing Medicare, make sure that the REFERRING physician is the actual primary provider. The nutritionist will be the RENDERING and ATTENDING provider

5) This is not an "incident to" service. Once a referral to the dietitian is in place, the dietitian can be independent and sign his/her own visits (also assuming you have enrolled them with Medicare and any other insurance that you bill).

6) I don't bill private insurance, so your mileage may vary with them. FWIW, I've never had the private insurance biller come back at me with a denial for coding reasons
 
nutritionist

Thank you erjones147. That was a big help. Do you know anything about the credentials they need to have?

Pam
 
See #1 of my previous post. It also wouldn't hurt if they were also a Certified Diabetes Educator. The RD does NOT have to have any other "alphabet soup" after their name - they do NOT need to be an MD, FNP, RN, etc. - just an RD

Something vague like "Obesity Counselor" wouldn't pass muster, I would think
 
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My question is....since my Dietitian is using "Obesity" for her diagnosis because of the provider's referral statement, how can I educate on other Diagnosis to have Medicaid/Medicare pay for our Dietitian's services? Can I code other diagnosis with my obseity code? And how am I using the "Incident to Physician" code always or just on the first intial visit? Thank you for answering....
 
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