Wiki Ranking of dx.

[heatherwinters]

I have a clinician who lists the dx in his assessment as 1), 2), 3) etc. And then ranks them on the encounter form in a different order. Does the billing have to match the assessment portion of the note in terms of primary diagnosis if the clinician has numbered them on his assessment, or can their order be adjusted when coding and billing? I was just wondering how an auditor would like at this since some insurances base their reimbursement on the ranking of those codes.

 

[mitchellde]

I always considered the ranking of dx to be a coder function and responsibility as we have coding rules which dictates to us those can be or must be first-listed. The provider has their reasons for their ranking but I have never let that affect how I rank them.

 

[heatherwinters]

Ranking

That is how I have been doing it as well. I just wanted to make sure that I was not alone in this thinking.