Wiki Modifiers and progress notes

[kstine713]

Hello!

Our office has always updated progress notes to match any time a modifier was added to a claim, but we have talked to a few other offices who have said that auditors do not care about whether the modifiers on the claim, are also reflected on the progress notes. They only care whether the services & documentation support the use of a modifier. Can anyone confirm whether or not if a modifier is added to a claim, it also needs to be added back to the note?

Thank you!

 

[thomas7331]

I agree with the other offices you've talked to - auditors validate that the codes on the claims that were submitted to the payer are supported by the provider's documentation of the services rendered. Codes and modifiers don't really don't belong in the medical record, and although many EHR systems include them, they don't mean anything in an audit because those are internal to the provider's system only, and are not the codes have been submitted for payment.