Testimonials
- Jessica MayfieldWe have utilized HMI’s for chargemaster compliance and billing reviews for nearly 10-years. We have always found that their staff to be knowledgeable, resourceful and professional in all services provided to our organization.We recently transitioned to HMI from another Physician Documentation & Coding Compliance Review vendor, and the entire experience has been positive. HMI has been extremely accommodating throughout the process and has demonstrated a willingness to adapt to our workflows, leading to a seamless transition. We’ve received positive feedback from our providers about their experiences with HMI, and the Coding Hotline has been an invaluable resource. For anyone looking for a new consulting partner, I would highly recommend HMI.I’ve worked with HMI employing them to conduct audits of physician documentation and coding. They have consistently produced quality work in a very timely fashion with reports that were well written and easy to understand. Communication has always been prompt and effective. I have such confidence in their work that, over the years, I brought them from my prior location to my current location. I would recommend HMI to anyone in need of accurate and timely coding or auditing.We have been working with HMI since 2010 and have expanded the use of their services to include CDM and ED Coding. The HMI coding staff is extremely knowledgeable and has become an integral part of our coding team. Our consultant Beth never shies away from any CDM project that comes her way. We appreciate the professionalism and teamwork we have with HMI."I have had the privilege of working with HMI for twenty plus years and have always found their representatives to be professional and knowledgeable in all aspects of acute hospital and professional service charge master management. Additionally ongoing coding related reviews and billing reviews and associated report backs are timely and positively impact appropriate revenue capture - billing - and compliance." "I recommend HMI to be considered when choosing a partner to assist with the complications of maintaining an accurate charge master and associated billing and coding practices."David AlleyWe have utilized HMI Corp. since 2002 for consultation services related to chargemaster review and updates and have always found their services to be professional of nature and valuable to our organization.MaryAnn HastingsHaving worked in healthcare revenue cycle for more than three decades, I have partnered with many vendors. My vendor of choice for CDM Review, E/M Coding Compliance and Physician Education is without a doubt HMI, LLC. Mary Quimby and Vickie Faler are not only subject matter experts, they are true partners providing that extra level of service that sets them far above others in the industry. I have worked with them for 15+ years in 5 different acute facilities, and multi-specialty physician groups. Using their sophisticated, data driven modeling, they have identified significant revenue opportunities for all my facilities using overall conditions, code level conditions, comparison conditions, relationship conditions and category constraints as part of their approach to the CDM review. I highly recommend them for their expertise and commitment. You will find none better.HMI has been a great partner with MedStar Washington Hospital Center now for many years. We can always count on them to provide us with support on small to very large projects. HMI delivers consistent and honest results and additionally provides very thoughtful & targeted education to our physicians.Denise MooreHMI has been a very reliable resource for Princeton Community Hospital for many, many years. I have had the opportunity to work with many staff members and have found all to be reliable and courteous in every aspect. The staff is very flexible and provides Princeton Community with the support and coding stability needed. Thank you for the sometime short notices for coding coverage when unexpected situations arise with our staff. We thank you for your coding expertise as well as your continued auditing support and look forward to a lasting relationship for future endeavors Denise Moore, CCS Coding Manager Princeton Community Hospital“I have had the privilege of working with HMI over the past 10+ years with two different health systems. I have used HMI for hospital CDM and compliance reviews as well as physician coding reviews and education. I always receive top-notch service from the HMI team and I appreciate working with a partner that is always honest and responsive to my questions and needs. I have worked with Mary Quimby and Vickie Faler and both have proven to be very knowledgeable, accessible, and professional.”
Medical Coding Tips for Managing the COVID-19 Pandemic
Medical Coding Tips for Coronavirus COVID-19
Demand for medical coding companies has surged in recent months. COVID-19 has revealed medical coding inefficiencies, and firms are struggling to keep up.
Good medical coding companies work with healthcare organizations to solve inefficiencies and reduce errors. Effective medical coding tips helps a company avoid wastage, capture lost revenue, and reduce patient conflicts.
Your healthcare organization might have effective medical coding systems in place. Unfortunately, a pandemic like COVID-19 can reveal problems with any organization’s medical coding.
The CDC, CMS, and AMA have all released COVID-19 coding guidelines in recent weeks. We’ll summarize that information below to help your organization manage the COVID-19 pandemic.
What Providers Need to Know About COVID-19 Medical Coding & Billing Tips
COVID-19 has put strain on healthcare providers across the United States. Effective coding and billing helps organizations manage the infectious disease and avoid becoming overwhelmed.
The healthcare industry is adapting to COVID-19 and creating new codes for the novel coronavirus. The pandemic is bringing in new patients with unique needs, creating more coding and documentation challenges for organizations.
Below, we’ll summarize some of the guidance released by the CDC, CMS, and AMA in weeks for medical coding during COVID-19.
CDC Guidance on ICD-10-CM for Positive COVID-19 Test Results
The Centers for Disease Control released new medical coding guidance in March for COVID-19. The CDC added the new International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM) emergency code from the World Health Organization.
Based on that guidance, the code for the diagnosis of COVID-19 is U07.1, 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease.
The CDC expected to implement that code in October 2020, but they moved the implementation date to April 1 after the rapid spread of the disease.
The CDC recommends only using U07.1 to document a confirmed COVID-19 case based on a confirmed test result or a presumptive positive test result. This code also applies to asymptomatic patients who test positive for coronavirus.
U07.1.1 is a principle or first-listed diagnosis code. That means providers should sequence the code first, then use appropriate codes for associated manifestations of the illness, unless dealing with obstetric patients.
The CDC does not recommend using the U07.1 code to diagnose suspected, possible, probable, or inconclusive cases of COVID-19. Providers should only use this code for confirmed (or presumptively confirmed) test results.
Coding for Exposure to COVID-19
The CDC recommends using code Z03.818 for exposure to COVID-19. This code covers encounter for observation for suspected exposure to other biological agents ruled out and screening, according to CDC regulations.
HCPCS Codes for Diagnosing Patients and Stopping Spread
CMS created Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes to help providers get reimbursed for diagnosing patients and stopping the spread of COVID-19.
CMS recently announced two new codes, including U0001 and U0002, which cover COVID-19 tests:
• U0001: This code is used to document and bill for tests performed at CDC laboratories.
• U0002: This code is used to document and bill for tests performed at non-CDC laboratories, including clinical laboratories outside of the CDC.
Medicare has accepted these codes since April 1, 2020, although any codes will be retroactive to February 4 to account for any tests performed since that date. Providers can expect to receive approximately $35 for U0001 coded claims and $51 for U0002 coded claims through Medicare.
American Medical Association Reveals COVID-19 Coding & Guidance
On May 20, AMA released new coding and guidance for the Medical Coding Tips COVID-19 coronavirus.
AMA’s new Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes were created to streamline the novel coronavirus testing available across the United States.
Key points from the AMA’s CPT codes include:
• The AMA accepted the addition of code 87635 to report infectious agent detection by nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) for COVID-19 by amplified probe technique. The code is effective from March 13 onward.
• The AMA accepted the revision of code 86318 to report immunoassay for infectious agent antibodies and to be a parent to 86328.
• The AMA accepted the addition of code 86328 to report single step antibody testing for COVID-19. They also accepted the addition of child code 86769 to report multiple-step antibody testing for COVID-19. These new codes and revisions were effective from April 10 onward.
• The AMA accepted the addition of PLA code 020U to report the BioFire Respiratory Panel 2.1 (RP2.1) test, with the new code effective from May 20 onward.
You can view full details of the AMA’s expanded COVID-19 medical coding additions and revisions here.
Telehealth Coding for COVID-19
More healthcare providers are using telehealth for patient care. Telehealth can introduce new coding challenges beyond COVID-19.
HHS has relaxed certain rules during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing providers to use telehealth while getting paid the same amount for patient care – even though care is provided virtually instead of on-site.
CMS has released a list of HCPCS codes to document telehealth services and other virtual patient visits. These codes will be covered under the Physician Fee Schedule throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
AMA has released its own guidance on telehealth billing with CPT codes. The AMA’s guidance covers telehealth visits, online digital visits, remote patient monitoring, and similar telehealth services.
Other Medical Coding Tips COVID-19
COVID-19 medical coding can be complicated. By following these tips, you can minimize disruption and maximize patient care during the pandemic:
• Check the latest information from the CDC, CMS, AMA, and other official organizations frequently. The situation is changing constantly, and these organizations regularly release new coding guidelines.
• Assess documentation guidelines in EHRs to ensure providers are accurately documenting services.
• Take extra care to provide complete, precise, accurate documentation that reflects all related conditions during this pandemic. Researchers will use this data to assess this pandemic and the response, and high-quality data will be more valuable for preventing future pandemics.
Request Contract Medical Coding Services from HMI Corp Today
Struggling to keep up with medical coding during COVID-19? Your organization is not alone.
HMI Corp is one of America’s leading contract medical coding companies. We have decades of proven expertise solving medical coding issues across the United States.
Our contract medical coding specialists are all US-Based and have experience with TruCode, Meditech, VISTA, 3M, McKesson, Cerner, Epic, and CHCS/CHCSII.
All coding services are performed by AHIMA and/or AAPC credentialed medical coding professionals. Our professionals have firsthand expertise in Inpatient/MS-DRG, Outpatient Surgery, Physician E/M, Emergency Department E/M, Interventional Radiology, Ambulatory Surgery, GI/Endoscopy, and many other fields.
For help from one of the leading contract medical coding companies in the United States, contact HMI Corp today.