ICD 10 Coding Alert

Find out if this will affect the 2013 implementation date.

It may not even be 2012 yet, but the CPT Editorial Committee is already looking ahead to 2013. The group is examining which codes to revise, delete, and introduce in the future, and we've got a taste of what 2013 could hold for you from an ICD-10 standpoint.

As all coders should be aware, Oct. 1, 2013 will mark the beginning of CMS's requirement that all practices switch to the ICD-10 system. However, the American Medical Association (AMA) has taken a stand against the new diagnosis coding system, notes Peter A. Hollmann, MD, chair of the CPT Editorial Panel, during the CPT 2012 Annual Symposium in Chicago on Nov. 16. "There's a lot of anxiety and a lot of stress" about ICD-10, he said, which led the AMA's House of Delegates to formally request a repeal to ICD-10 during the group's Nov. 15 meeting.

Keep in mind: This does not mean that ICD-10 won't go into effect, but it does mean that the AMA is trying to find a workaround to avoid the resources that each practice will have to put into the ICD-10 migration. A formal ICD-10 repeal could only take place following governmental intervention.

CMS's response: During a Nov. 17 "ICD-10 Implementation" call, CMS's Denise Buenning responded to a question about whether ICD-10 will actually be delayed or eliminated. "There is no truth to the rumor, there is no pushback--the date for ICD-10 remains Oct. 1, 2013," she said.