Cardiology Coding

Cardiology Coding Background

American College of Cardiology – TCN Partner

Scientific advances and technologic innovations have transformed cardiology from what was an E&M specialty of internal medicine into a “cross-over” specialty that encompasses E&M services, endovascular procedures, interventional radiology, and nuclear medicine. This emphasizes the need for coders who specialize in cardiology, coders who code cardiology day-in and day-out so they develop a mastery of all of the nuances of this rapidly evolving subspecialty.Cardiology is a specialty that treats a disproportionate share of seniors, hence Medicare. With the OIG investigators and RAC auditors focusing on Medicare providers, cardiologists are considered “high value targets.” The OIG budget for 2011 gives these “medical police” a $92 million increase for the oversight of HHS’s Medicare and Medicaid and other programs. According to HHS, there is “a ratio of $17.5 to $1 return on investment…of OIG’s health care oversight efforts.” Coding errors, even inadvertent ones, carry extremely high risks. The 2010 revision of the NCCI data set, which applies to Medicare and other governmental beneficiaries’ claims, includes 24,060 new active pairs and 19,083 terminated pairs and 5,299 swapped pairs. Are you ready?

The demand for cardiology coding specialists has become acute. The supply is scarce. Hospitals and large medical groups routinely offer recruitment incentives and hefty sign-on bonuses. If you have coding questions, or require assistance, The Coding Network has a dedicated team of expert cardiology coders ready to assist your practice with its helpline and coding accuracy audits, as well as ongoing day to day coding services.

The Coding Network offers:

• A team of cardiology coding specialists headed by a nationally known expert.
• Decades of experience in cardiology coding for academic and private practices across the country.

The Cardiology Coding Need:

• Expert cardiology coders are difficult to find, expensive to recruit, and their ongoing “care-and-feeding” can be very costly.
• Few certified coders have the in-depth cardiology experience and specialty knowledge base possessed by TCN’s cardiology coding staff.
• There is no such thing as a “mulligan” when submitting Medicare and insurance claims. They must be accurate the first time. The legal and financial risks of upcoding or undervaluation of a service can be enormous.
• Cardiology coding now includes components of interventional radiology, electrophysiology, endovascular surgery, a wide array of diagnostic testing, and E&M services, each of which has its own complexities of dense and baffling rules.
• Coder turnover in a practice creates cash flow “whiplash.”
• In smaller practices, full-time coders are expensive additions to overhead items who often fill their costly time with other less-challenging non-coding tasks.

The Coding Network’s Solution:

• Certified and experienced cardiology coding “black belt” experts.
• All coding performed to HIPPA/HITECH standards within the United States of America.
• With our per-encounter cardiology coding prices, you only pay for what you need. Our volume-driven pricing makes us an ideal and money-saving ongoing solution for practices of all sizes.
• Our team of cardiology coding experts stabilizes cash flow.   Never worry about revenue cycle peaks-and-valleys caused by vacation coverage or extended medical or family leave.
• You are in total control; we don’t require any monthly minimums or annual subscriptions.

The Coding Network’s Services:

• Temporary cardiology coding to cover vacations, extended absences, employee turnover, etc.
• Ongoing expert cardiology coding.
• Interventional cardiology coding.
• Cardiac catheterization laboratory coding.
• Electrophysiology coding.
• Cardiac computerized tomographic angiography (CCTA) coding.
• Cardiology coding backlog resolution.
• Accuracy and compliance audits of cardiology coding done by others in an educational and user-friendly format.
• RAC and OIG audit defense.
• Medical record chart documentation training services for physicians and other providers.
• Telephone and email cardiology coding “helpline” services.

Are You (or one of your colleagues) a Member of the American College of Cardiology?

• If you or a cardiologist in your group is a member of the American College of Cardiology, please call us at (888) 263-3633 or email us at service@codingnetwork.com for details of our ACC members-only cardiology coding offer.