February 7th 2025
“The most important tip as a physician, when you talk to the patient, sit down. Even if you sit down for 5 minutes, it's worth almost 5 hours,’ Leon Kircik, MD, said in his interview with Dermatology Times at SBS 2025.
Coding highlights of 2005 & 2006
January 1st 2006Year 2005 was filled with many changes that affected dermatologists and how they billed Medicare and other commercial carriers. Year 2006 is anticipated to be an equally challenging year. In this article, I will highlight what I feel was important this year and what you need to be aware of in the year ahead. Due to the space constraints of this article, I cannot go into great detail, but I will at least let you know what you should be aware of and what you need to implement.
Billing for Mohs procedures, warts, ulcers
December 1st 2005Q I billed Medicare for the following services. All of the Mohs procedures were denied. Patient was in a 90-day postoperative period for a flap that was done 20 days earlier. Tell me how I should have coded to avoid the denials of my Mohs services?
Understanding the rising prevalence of treated disease
September 1st 2005National report — The driving force behind the growth in private insurance spending between 1987 and 2002 was the rise in treated disease prevalence, rather than the rise in spending per treated case, according to a new study from Emory University in Atlanta.
Procedural coding must capture accurate services; M.D. urges survey participation
August 1st 2005Chicago — It's ultimately the physician's responsibility to be sure that procedural codes accurately capture the medically necessary services performed during the visit, says a presenter here at the American Academy of Dermatology's Academy '05.
Pathology holds: when, why and how
August 1st 2005There is probably no single dermatology practice in this country that doesn't do biopsies, shave removals or excisions that require that a skin specimen be sent to an outside reference lab. A few practices have an in-house laboratory, but it still can be several days before the in-house dermatopathologist has time to read the slides.
Medicare woes add to practice difficulties
June 1st 2005Should the cuts take place as planned, 18 percent of physicians surveyed by the American Medical Association say they would stop accepting new Medicare patients; 57 percent would decrease time spent with patients; and 46 percent would reduce staffing levels.
Conducting clinical trials comes under greater scrutiny
May 1st 2005National report — Clinical research investigators need to be aware of their numerous responsibilities to sponsors, patients, the public and, sometimes, the government. Complying with rules might be more important than ever, given the recent media attention focused on problems surfacing with some medications years after they have been approved and on the market.
Modifier -79 rules; Two-digit 'devils'
April 1st 2005Modifiers, modifiers, modifiers! Wouldn't life be great if we didn't have to deal with all those two-digit devils? Why can't we just send a claim to the insurance company and get paid without trying to figure out which CPT code gets a modifier, which one doesn't, and, if one is needed, which one should be selected? Worse yet, in many instances, we need two, three and, yes, sometimes even four modifiers. There are -24, -25, -58, -59,-76, -79, just to name a few. Then there are those darn local modifiers like -GA, -GY and -GZ. Gee whiz, is more like it!