Otolaryngology Coding Alert
Audiologist Must Have Her Own NPI for Billing Purposes
Question: How do I bill for an audiology service if the audiologist hasn’t yet received her NPI number? Should I bill under another audiologist’s name who is checking her work and signing off on the chart?
North Dakota Subscriber
Answer: No, this is not the correct approach. Audiologists need to have an independent NPI number and cannot bill under another provider.
The audiologist can start seeing Medicare patients beginning on the date that her enrollment application has been submitted. You must hold the claims for her services until she receives her approval and NPI number. Then you can submit all of her claims to Medicare, from the time of application submission until her approval.
Medicare will make payment for covered, medically necessary services that are ordered by a physician or practitioner who has opted out of Medicare if the ordering physician/practitioner has acquired a National Provider Identifier (NPI) and provided that the services are not furnished by another physician/practitioner who has also opted out.
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