Neurology & Pain Management Coding Alert

Revisions to +99356, +99357 make Medicare payments easier to obtain. The deletion of modifier 21 (Prolonged evaluation and management services) and the revision of prolonged services codes in CPT 2009 has the entire coding industry talking. The impact of these changes on your neurology coding should be mostly positive -- particularly when reporting inpatient prolonged services. Your Neurologist Can Visit More Than Once As you-ve probably noticed, Medicare's current policy for reporting -inpatient prolonged- is at odds with the AMA's CPT 2009 definitions. The CPT revisions are -a beautiful clarification that will allow physicians to see their patients more than once a day in the inpatient setting, and use prolonged services codes if the compilation of visits during the course of the day allows it,- says Joan Gilhooly, CPC, CHCC,president of Medical Business Resources in Chicago. Just before the start of 2009, Neurology Coding Alert reported an update to +99356 (Prolonged [...]