FPM Toolkit Can Help Hone Coding Skills, Boost Payments

By News Staff
11/28/2006

The AAFP's Family Practice Management journal has packaged many of its coding tools together and is making them available to help family physicians improve their coding and increase their reimbursement. The FPM Coding Toolkit bundles the following 10 coding tools, offering them at a single price.

FPM Coding Toolkit can help FPs avoid feeling as though they're "coding blind."

ICD-9 Codes for Family Medicine: The Short List is a single-sheet reference (on durable card stock) to 600 frequently used diagnosis codes, with the 100 most common codes highlighted.
CD-9 Codes for Family Medicine: The Long List is a four-page card stock list with 1,500 diagnosis codes.
FPM Pocket Guide to the 1997 Evaluation/Management Documentation Guidelines is designed to fit in a coat or shirt pocket and is printed on card stock for durability. It contains the documentation requirements for new and established patient office visits (codes 99211-15 and 99201-05).
FPM Coding Anthology includes FPM articles covering topics such as when to use code 99211, how to get reimbursed for all your code 99214 visits, how to improve diagnosis coding accuracy and how to code based on physician time.
The Level-IV Reference Card (PDF file: 2 pages / 52 KB. More about PDFs.) is a single-sheet resource to help physicians recognize when it is appropriate to code a level IV visit and to help them comply with documentation guidelines.
The E/M Progress Note Template (PDF file: 1 page / 82 KB. More about PDFs.) is a checklist for counting systems and body areas for E/M documentation.
New or Established Patient Decision Tree (PDF file: 1 page / 446 KB. More about PDFs.) is designed to help physicians determine whether to code a visit as conducted with a new or established patient.
The Claim Correction Form (PDF file: 1 page / 272 KB. More about PDFs.) streamlines the process of filing a corrected claim by identifying the original problem and explaining its resolution.
Questions and Answers from FPM's Coding and Documentation Department is a collection of recent questions and answers from the pages of FPM.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Documentation Guidelines for E/M Services are available from the CMS Web site as downloadable PDF documents.

Order the coding toolkit online or by calling (800) 944-0000 and asking for item 2509. The cost for members is $35; nonmembers pay $50. Several of the tools included in the toolkit are available individually; to order items singly, go to the coding tools Web page and link to the appropriate item numbers.

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