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Home Health & Hospice Week

Hospice:

Beef Up Documentation For Dementia Patients With 8 Steps

Published on Wed Nov 16, 2011

The more objective measures you use, the better off you'll be in medical review. You'd better focus on showing why your hospice's long-stay organic brain syndrome patient still qualifies for the benefit, or risk throwing away thousands of dollars in Medicare reimbursement. A widespread edit of hospice claims with a primary diagnosis of 294.8 (Organic brain syndrome) and length of stay exceeding 240 days turned up a 64 percent denial rate, HHH Medicare Administrative Contractor CGS reports in its December provider newsletter (see related story, p. 349). The edit shows why you need to strengthen your documentation for such patients. Tip: "You should argue anew the case for hospice eligibility with each recert," said RNs Beth  Noyce and Dana Walling of Ogden, Utah-based Applegate HomeCare and Hospice of Utah in a presentation at this fall's National Association for Home Care & Hospice annual meeting in Las Vegas. You must make your [...]
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