Remember those friends and family cell phone plans where you didn’t use minutes if you called people in your circle? You had to pick who you wanted in your group and they had to pick you. It was very...
CMS and the American Medical Association (AMA) may have made peace regarding ICD-10, but it seems some members of Congress didn’t get the memo. Reps. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Tom E. Price, R-Ga...
The optical system is the most complex organ system of the human body and is subject to specific disease processes. Shelley C. Safian, PhD, RHIA, CCS-P, COC, CPC-I, AHIMA-approved ICD-10-CM/PCS trainer explains how to code some common eye diseases and treatments in ICD-10.
Alas, poor urosepsis. I knew him, Horatio, a condition of infinite vagueness. And thankfully, one ICD-10-CM is putting out to pasture. Now, if only the physicians would get on board. Physicians...
People do some strange things on vacation. I mean, really, really strange things. Take Mike, for example. Mike just returned from his European vacation and has come into the Fix ‘Em Up Clinic for a...
Betty Hovey, CPC, COC, CPB, CPMA, CPC-I, CPCD, and Shelley C. Safian, PhD, RHIA, CCS-P, CPC-H, CPC-I, review anatomy details of the heart and how to report ICD-10-CM codes for atherosclerosis and conduction disorders.
After a vigorous, last-ditch push by the AMA for a two-year transition period after implementation to protect physicians from all ICD-CM coding errors and mistakes, CMS and AMA made a joint...
The Fourth of July is in the books for another year and once again, we saw an interesting assortment of patients in the Fix ‘Em Up Clinic over the weekend. Let’s take a look at some of the more...
We’re officially three months (okay, 91 days) away from ICD-10 implementation, so you need to give your surgeons a quick introduction to ICD-10-PCS. Do NOT try to teach them to code. That’s not the...
Jurassic World is ruling the box office, so I thought I would use another blast from the past for the blog. Archeologists in Peru recently uncovered the skeleton of a teenage girl in a historic...
Richard came in to see Dr. Guts complaining of severe abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and blood in his stool. Dr. Guts sends Richard for a battery of tests and discovers Richard suffers from a...
How ready are you for ICD-10? The answer might depend on the type and size of your organization. Eighty-five percent of hospitals reported training staff on ICD-10, according to a recent eHealth...
Multiple surveys have shown that physician practices are lagging behind in preparation for ICD-10. CMS recently released a Quick Start Guide that outlines five steps healthcare professionals should...
Many organizations still lag in ICD-10 implementation, but it's not too late to prepare. Gloryanne Bryant, BS, RHIA, RHIT, CCS, CCDS; Jean S. Clark, RHIA, CSHA; and Caroline Piselli, MBA, RN, FACHE, detail the steps organizations should take in order to be ready by October 1.
Cardiac conditions are some of the most common diagnoses seen in hospitals. Betty Hovey, CPC, COC, CPB, CPMA, CPC-I, CPCD, and Shelley C. Safian, PhD, RHIA, CCS-P, CPC-H, CPC-I, review coding conventions and documentation details for reporting heart failure and angina in ICD-10-CM.
The American Medical Association (AMA) is pushing for a two-year safe harbor for physicians so the doctors won’t be penalized for “errors, mistakes, and malfunctions relating to the transition.” That...
Mary decided to take advantage of a break in the rainy weather to head out and do some bird watching. The birds, however, were in no mood to be watched. Mary first came upon a warbler nest with four...
Sharme Brodie, RN, CCDS , highlights guidance on ICD-10-PCS root operations and seventh characters for ICD-10-CM from the latest issue of Coding Clinic .
Sometimes the logic of the American Medical Association (AMA) escapes me. Okay, most of the time, I have no idea what the people at the AMA are thinking. Take the organization’s continuing crusade to...
Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Alabama, doesn't want providers penalized for ICD-10 "errors, mistakes, and malfunctions relating to the transition" for two years after implementation. Unfortunately, it doesn't...
