Smart Tactics for Coding and Billing Observation and Inpatient Admits

Observation or Inpatient? Find out how to avoid the coding snafus this 1 question can cause. 

Recognizing the difference between a patient in observation and an inpatient admission isn’t easy ... especially when you consider that both of these services take place in the facility that may or may not have a designated observation area. So not surprisingly, coding and documentation supporting these services is ever-so-crucial — but tricky to get right.

That’s why you should join hospital reimbursement expert Christi Sarasin, CCS, to learn exactly what documentation elements must appear on each observation and inpatient admit claim — and how that very documentation dictates which codes you should report. The slightest slip-up could cost you a chunk of deserved reimbursement, so you can’t afford to miss this session where you’ll walk away confidently with the coding rules, documentation requirements and tips for process improvement.

You will learn:

• What CMS guidelines say about observation - and what’s new.
• What current coding guidelines say about observation — and how to tell if you’re following them.
• 5 Common observation/admit billing mishaps: Why they happen and how you can avoid them.
• Use this documentation checklist: What must be in writing to bill an observation or an admit.
• 3 Tips for acquiring the best documentation from the practitioner.
• Stay out of trouble: Honest mistakes can happen, but following these steps will ensure compliant coding.

About the speaker

Christi Sarasin, CCS, CPC-H, FCS is an independent consultant with over 27 years of experience in health information management. As a healthcare consultant for the past 14 years, Ms. Sarasin has specialized in

• DRG Validations,
• Ambulatory Surgery and Emergency Department (facility component) Coding Reviews,
• Coding Educational Inservices,
• APC Payment Sampling Reviews,
• Inpatient and Outpatient Coding Compliance and Operations Reviews and
• Interim Coding Supervisory Consulting.

With over 13 years of experience at a 350-bed acute care hospital, Ms. Sarasin's hands-on experience in the various operational processes of a health information department has given her a broad perspective of the global medical record workflow processes and the outside influences that impact coding, reimbursement and compliance.