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Podiatry Coding & Billing Alert

Avoid Auditor Heat on Pre-Op H&Ps

Published on Fri May 21, 2010

Billing a pre-op H&P for established patients is not an option.Not everyone agrees on when -- if ever -- separately reporting a pre-op history and physical (H&P) is allowable. According to one school of thought, pre-op encounters that take place outside of the global period (more than one full day in advance of the surgery date for major procedures) are not technically included in the global package.Whether to report an E/M for a pre-op visit ultimately depends on the circumstances, comments Renee Hilgert, owner and manager of Dallas-based Podiatry Claims consulting service in, but an E/M code may be allowed for pre-op visits. Others tend to stick with the conventional coding mores. "If the visit is for the pre-operative clearance for the procedure, it is not billable no matter when it is performed," says Becky Zellmer, CPC, MBS, CBCS, operations supervisor for Madison, Wis.- based SVA Healthcare Services, echoing the conventional way [...]
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