Current Procedural Terminology Coding for Surgical Pathology: A Review and One Academic Center's Experience With Pathologist-Verified Coding.
Arch Pathol Lab Med
; 142(12): 1524-1532, 2018 12.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29582674
ABSTRACT
CONTEXT. The Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) system is a standardized numerical coding system for reporting medical procedures and services, and is the basis for reimbursement of health care providers by Medicare and other third-party payers. Accurate CPT coding is therefore crucial for appropriate compensation as well as for compliance with Medicare policies, and erroneous coding may result in loss of revenues and/or significant monetary penalties for a hospital or practice. OBJECTIVE. To provide a review of the history, current state, and basic principles of CPT coding, in particular as it applies to the practice of surgical pathology, and to present our experience with initiating a new system of pathologist involvement in the review and verification of CPT codes, including the most common codes that require modification in our practice at the time of sign-out or post-sign-out auditing. DATA SOURCES. Review of English language literature, published CPT resources from the American Medical Association and other professional organizations, and billing quality data from a single institution. CONCLUSIONS. Although the appropriate extent of physician involvement in CPT coding is a matter of some debate, a multidisciplinary approach involving both health care providers and professional coders appears to be the best way to achieve accuracy.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Patologia Cirúrgica
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Current Procedural Terminology
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Codificação Clínica
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2018
Tipo de documento:
Article