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Billing for translation services
- Thread starter lmeszaros
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CodingKing
True Blue
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No, you cannot use that code to bill for the services of the translator. A translator is reported with T1013 but it's not payable by most payers. The payer I work for does pay for it for some highly specialized plans. However, those same plans also pay to have a patients cat get a flea dip if it would help keep the patient in the community and out of a nursing facility.
99358 has a specific purpose and if you read the guidelines you will see that interpreter service wouldn't even loosely fit the definition
From what I read on an older post falls under office overhead. I hear the expense is tax deductible so maybe check with the tax accountant. There is a good post around here from Pam Brooks all about it.
99358 has a specific purpose and if you read the guidelines you will see that interpreter service wouldn't even loosely fit the definition
From what I read on an older post falls under office overhead. I hear the expense is tax deductible so maybe check with the tax accountant. There is a good post around here from Pam Brooks all about it.
danskangel313
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Translators are paid by the hospital/facility/office for their services, usually as a salary as opposed to per hour. Because their services are reimbursed via the facility's payroll, they can't also be reimbursed by a payer. RVUs are not a component of their salary.
Although providers are also on salary and charges can be billed for their services, the reimbursement doesn't go directly to the provider; it goes to the facility. Their salary remains the same, regardless of how many patients they see. That's why (most) facilities have policies on the minimum number of RVUs a provider should be meeting per month (usually). If a provider got paid directly from every claim going out, then there'd be way more incentive to see as many patients as possible, thus lowering patient quality of care.
Although providers are also on salary and charges can be billed for their services, the reimbursement doesn't go directly to the provider; it goes to the facility. Their salary remains the same, regardless of how many patients they see. That's why (most) facilities have policies on the minimum number of RVUs a provider should be meeting per month (usually). If a provider got paid directly from every claim going out, then there'd be way more incentive to see as many patients as possible, thus lowering patient quality of care.
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