Wiki ED to Observation~~ HELP!!!

[Lanserr]

I have a patient who was seen in Consultation in the ED and the admitted to Observation by the Consulting physician. The patient was then seen by the same physican on the Initial observation day. What code should I use to bill the Initial Observation charge? Do I use the Initial Observation code?

 

[FTessaBartels]

Initial Observation Visit

If the "consulting" physician admitted the patient for observation then you should be using ONLY the Initial Observation codes (99218-99220) for this DOS. Use all the documentation for this one DOS to arrive at your level of service (regardless of whether it is called "consultation" or "H&P" or "whatever").

Hope that helps.

F Tessa Bartels, CPC, CEMC