Wiki Purposely not billing for a lab performed in order to upcode E/M?

[mmiele1979]

I have a colleague asking me if he can purposely just not bill for a lab done in house so he can add a point to the MDM. To me, this is not correct coding but on my own I cannot find the documentation to support my claim. Can someone else confirm or deny? Where can I find this in writing? This is someone not from my office but my physicians are paying attention to the conversation and I need to have a reference.

 

[Pam Warren]

First paragraph in CPT under Instructions of Use: Select the name of the procedure or services that accurately identifies the service performed.
Also: NCCI, under General Correct Coding Policies: Procedures shall be reported with the most comprehensive CPT code that describes the services performed.