Small Changes in ICD-10 Coding is a Big Deal for Practices

Once again, October 1st was the BIG DAY. Medicare’s one year ICD-10 grace period ended October 1st of this year, a year after ICD-10 coding requirements were turned on. That year wasn’t so tough, was it? After all of the apprehension leading up to the ICD-10 transition, many nephrology practices were surprised that they didn’t have much trouble adjusting to the new codes. Unfortunately, this easy adjustment gave some nephrologists a false sense of security.

For the past year, CMS was especially lenient, paying for codes in the right “family of codes” without requiring more specificity. From now on, claims that don’t include cause codes to go along with a CKD or ESRD diagnosis will not be paid. If your physicians, coding specialists or billing service are not aware of CMS requirement for specificity, you could see a severe increase in denials. To save the time it takes to resubmit claims and to ensure your payments don’t plummet, reach out to Tower Physician Solutions. Tower’s revenue cycle management experts will work with you to ensure you get paid for your services.
E-mail info@towerps.com or call 630-243-5731.