Audits
While many consulting firms pass the responsibility for the coding portion of a chart review on to their coding department, we feel that our clients contact ERcoder, Inc for an expert opinion on their coding. It is for this reason that our President, Todd Thomas, personally performs our chart reviews.
He will review the documentation in the emergency department record and compare the Evaluation and Management code that is supported by the documentation in the ED chart to the Evaluation and Management code that was originally assigned to the chart. Data from the review is extrapolated similar to a Medicare audit to show lost revenue on under billed claims or potential liability from upcoded charts. A crucial part of an effective compliance process, our external chart review will:
- Assess the accuracy of E&M code selection based on available documentation in the ED record.
- Identify strengths and weaknesses in physician documentation relative to Emergency Department E&M services.
- Ensure procedure codes are supported in the ED record
- Identify overcoding and undercoding issues
- Ensure compliance with Federal and State regulations
- Minimize your risk for fraud/abuse allegations
- Identify education needs for your coders and physicians
- Determine the need to revise or improve forms
- Compare your E&M utilization to national and regional averages
Our final report includes a chart-by-chart breakdown of pros and cons for each chart and recommendations to correct any problems. In addition to reviewing the emergency charts, other factors that contribute the emergency coding (superbill, chargemaster, etc) are also reviewed for accuracy.
Helpful Coding Links
Emergency Physician Coding & Documentation Workshop
In this one day course we will cover every element of coding and documentation for emergency physician services. Find out more...