Writing Resources
The introduction of 3D mammography was an exciting advancement for breast imagers radiologists and patients alike Since FDA approval in 2011 the technology has proven itself time and time again In the midst of evolving CPT codes breast imagers are constantly required to adapt to the ever changing payer and workflow challenges The apprehension over whether or not an issuer will pay for mammography services is felt throughout an entire practice Education while challenging is key to understanding documentation billing and compliance requirements to thwart repeated claim denials Without proper support staff to train and educate physicians may not be reimbursed for the level of service they provided In years past physicians relied heavily on their billing staff or managers to take care of claim submission and many times there was a definite division of responsibility Physician technologists are trained to think clinically whereas secretarial and front staff are most often trained for administrative tasks But in recent years understanding billing coding and compliance has become the responsibility of the entire staff secretarial technical physician and billing Documenting patient reports records to include all required elements for specific CPT codes is essential Now more than ever it s become increasingly important for physicians to partner with their entire staff to ensure they are being reimbursed appropriately for their services Medicare publishes yearly CPT updates with the Final Rule Determination typically released in November with anticipated changes effective for January 1 However it s not uncommon for the announcement to include a notice that the expected proposed changes have been delayed For example with the addition of 3D mammography
