The Latest in Reimbursement & Coding Information from the Blog
Coding For A Debridement? Be Sure Your Diagnosis Code Makes Sense.
The surgical dressings available from AMERX Health Care are only covered by a patient’s insurance if they are being used for a surgical wound or a debrided wound. This debridement can be surgical, mechanical, chemical or autolytic. When performing a surgical debridement, both the CPT code selection and ICD-10 code selection are important. CPT Coding […]
Is Your Diagnosis Code Appropriate for the Dispensed Dressing?
Some surgical dressings only have coverage for full thickness ulcers. These include alginates, foams, and hydrogels. When dispensing a dressing that is only covered for full thickness ulcers, it is important to not only document the presence of a full thickness ulcer, but also submit a diagnosis code that reflects the presence of a full […]
Wound vs. Ulcer – Does It Matter?
While some physicians may interchange the terms “ulcer” and “wound” as if they are synonyms, when it comes to ICD-10, your choice of words DOES matter! What is the Difference between a Wound and an Ulcer? In ICD-10 language, a “wound” is something traumatic. An “ulcer” refers to a break in the skin that fails […]
One Ulcer, Two Dressings
Can You Bill For Two Different Dressings For The Same Ulcer? The answer is… YES! When can you dispense two dressings for the same ulcer? When a primary dressing, like collagen powder, is dispensed and requires a secondary dressing for securement, you can dispense both the primary and secondary dressings for the same ulcer—and bill […]
To Combine or Not to Combine
Multiple surgical dressings can be combined to appropriately cover a wound, however there are dressing combinations that are not appropriate. Different surgical dressings have different indications and you should not combine two dressings that have different indications for the same wound. One example of something that should not be done is to use a dressing […]