Stop Losing $$$ on Well Woman Exam Claims — CPT Coding Best Practices for Gynecology Practices

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Well-woman exams sound simple. They’re not. Gynecology practices lose thousands every year because payers deny, downcode, or bundle these visits due to coding errors, missing documentation, or confusion between preventive vs. problem-oriented care . If your practice is seeing unpaid or underpaid Well Woman claims, here’s the reality: It’s not the payer. It’s not the patient. It’s your coding workflows—and they’re costing you real money. Below is the no-nonsense breakdown of how to stop revenue leakage immediately. Why Gynecology Practices Keep Losing Money on Well-Woman Exams Most losses happen because of wrong CPT/ICD pairing , incorrect use of preventive codes, and failure to separate problem visits from preventive services. Top revenue killers: 1. Using the wrong preventive CPT code Common mistakes include: Billing 99381–99397  is incorrectly based on age Missing counseling or preventive components that justify higher-level codes Treating a preventive exam...
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Medicare and DME- Know more

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Did you know that since October 2013 physicians need to conduct a face-to-face interview with the proposed beneficiaries before ordering durable medical equipment? This is one of the rules specified by Medicare, which further clarifies the need to document the data in the patient’s records. A copy of this medical record needs to be sent to the supplier of the ordered DME.

Documentation- During such a face-to-face meeting there needs to be enough documentation in the relevant parts of the patient’s medical records justifying the beneficiary’s eligibility for the particular piece of durable medical equipment ordered on behalf of the patient. The physician also needs to be familiar with the Medicare policy requirements for the same. The particular policy clearly explains the specific conditions that qualify a patient for that particular DME. The relevant documentation of the medical record needs to be furnished with the suppliers of the DME who will need it before they can submit the claim forms to Medicare.

Role of the Physician- While a practitioner who is not a physician is eligible to conduct the face-to-face meeting; it is still the physician who should do the documentation on behalf of the beneficiary. The physician has to cosign the document signed by the non-physician practitioner (nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and physician assistants) who conducted the face-to-face. This is to ensure that the evaluation of the beneficiary was documented regarding the DME on that particular date of service. A signed order in place of a signed medical order does not hold well and is not the same as the physician cosigning the particular medical record. Hence DME billing is a crucial part.

Post-Documentation- Once the documentation is done after the exam, the physician needs to communicate the same to the supplier of the DME. The DME supplier on his or her part needs to be able to access the records of the face-to-face meeting and needs to maintain a copy of the written order along with other supporting documents and produce them on demand by CMS. What’s more, is that it is mandatory to hold these records for a minimum period of 7 years. The face-to-face interview being a precondition for payment, the DME supplier needs to maintain a copy of the records and produce it whenever required to Medicare.

To learn more about Medicare and DME- Know more, click here: https://bit.ly/3NJiZ0I  Contact us at info@medicalbillersandcoders.com/ 888-357-3226.

Location: United States

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