And there are somewhat hidden issues as well, problem areas that Oubre believes will add layers of complexity to implementation. One of Pontchartrain’s clinics actually began coding everything in ICD-10 in late August 2015 in an attempt to fully ready the staff and debug their operations.Įven so, there are variables to consider, such as how the transition will be handled by providers and other entities with whom Pontchartrain regularly interacts. Prior training at the clinic has involved roughly 62 hours of work by each staff member and as many as 250 practice runs involving patient case dual coding between the existing ICD-9 and the new ICD-10 set of codes. We know this is going to slow us down, and we’ve advised our patients that there may be some inconveniences,” Oubre says. It’s not just some minor business issue like a new phone system, so we feel a responsibility. All of this matters-patients are relying on us. “For oncologists, and I’m sure every other type of provider, you don’t want to do it wrong. The practice has also taken out a line of credit to guard against an interruption in revenue flow-caused by code-related denials or confusion-that some have estimated may be 90 days, Oubre says. The practice is going to increase the time allotted for patient visits from 15 minutes to 20 minutes and is suspending any double booking, so that doctors and other staff will have enough time to complete the new coding requirements. Pontchartrain-a practice of 2 clinics, 2 MDs, a nurse practitioner, and 17 support staff-has built in certain safeguards to lessen the chance that something will go wrong. Getting ready for the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), the mammoth set of code changes required by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), has involved a huge commitment to staff training and also much attention to the finer details, says Kathy Oubre, chief operating officer of Pontchartrain Hematology Oncology in Covington, Louisiana.Īfter several false starts, the new ICD-10 coding system, which includes thousands of new medical codes for billing and reporting, will go live on October 1, and Oubre’s practice, like many across the country, has been working hard to get employees used to the new system, so that problems with implementation can be minimized come October.
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