Dec 20, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
Pathologists and medical laboratory managers have only nine months to prepare their labs for ICD-10 implementation
Most clinical laboratory managers and pathologists know that October 1, 2014, is the date for implementation of ICD-10. After that date, each Medicare claim submitted by a medical laboratory must include the ICD-10 code provided by the referring physician.
This is a unique reason why clinical laboratories and pathology groups have keen interest in a smooth transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10. Medicare will reject clinical laboratory test claims that either don’t have an ICD-10 code or have an incorrect ICD-10 code. Thus, labs hope that their client physicians make a smooth transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10. (more…)
Aug 30, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement
Confusion, unhappiness, and many unresolved issues remain about the way government and private payers are handling claims for molecular diagnostic tests covered by the 114 new CPT codes
Dust is settling from the fiasco triggered by the Medicare program’s failure to be ready on January 1, 2013, to settle molecular diagnostic test claims filed under the 114 new Tier 1 and Tier 2 molecular CPT codes. The damage is not just limited to Medicare test claims, but also involves private health plans that were waiting to let the Medicare program set precedents on coverage and prices for the new molecular test codes.
Many Clinical Laboratories Must Cope With an Unsatisfactory Situation
Although federal Medicare officials and Medicare contractors have scrambled to rectify the situation, even today there is much unhappiness across the clinical laboratory industry about the current state of things. That unhappiness extends to state Medicaid and private payers because many of these payers have been slow to publish coverage guidelines and prices for these new molecular test CPT codes.
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Jun 21, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Medicare contractors are setting prices that are 40% to 60% lower than they paid medical laboratories last year for these same molecular diagnostic tests
Non-payment for most new molecular diagnostic test CPT codes continues to be a problem for the majority of medical laboratories across the country.
A lack of payment for these claims, have forced some clinical laboratories and pathology groups to stop doing molecular testing and lay off staff. At least one lab company shut its doors, blaming non-payment by its Medicare contractor as the primary reason.
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