Pathology/Lab Coding Alert

Apply HCPCS Level II codes for Medicare reimbursement. How will you ever choose the right Pap screening code when you have to maneuver dozens of coverage rules and procedure and diagnosis code choices? Just follow our experts advice for a step-by-step plan to select the right code -- every time. 1: Identify Reason for the Test Physicians order screening tests in the absence of signs or symptoms of disease. That means the patient has no current problems or past history of abnormal Pap results or cervical disease, explains Melanie Witt, RN, CPC, COBGC, MA, a coding expert based in Guadalupita, N.M. For many patients, youll see V76.2 (Special screening for malignant neoplasms; cervix: routine cervical Papanicolaou smear) to explain the reason for the test, explains Sean Weiss, CPC, CPC-P, CMPE, CCA-P, CCP-P, senior partner at The CMC Group LLC in Atlanta. The ordering physician might also use one of the following [...]