How do I fold telephone calls into the next face-to-face visit?
Phone calls area always bundled into the nearest-in-time E/M code when they do not qualify for Care Plan Oversight. In clinical documentation, by referring to patient phone calls since a prior visit, it may be possible to increase the level of the history while phone calls to other people may increase the complexity of decision making. This can permit use of a higher reimbursed Evaluation and Management CPT code. If you make phone calls during a home visit to patient relatives or caregivers, or even skilled nurses, the aggregate time of the visit and calls counts towards care coordination/counseling- face-to-face visit time- which can be used in lieu of the E/M clinical charting requirements to enhance reimbursement. • Can I see a Medicare patient in his or her home who does not qualify for a house call and charge a fee as long as the patient or I don’t file any claim with Medicare? Can I charge Medicare for a hotel call to a sick patient who is on vacation? It is illegal for any physi
