Alert! ICD-10 Conversion Is Now 56 Days Away and Could Put Financial Squeeze on Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups
Big question for medical laboratory managers is whether Medicare, private health insurers, and medical claims clearinghouses can make a smooth changeover when processing lab test claims using ICD-10 codes
Conversion to ICD-10 is now only 56 days away! Physicians are not the only ones with a large stake in the conversion from ICD-9 to ICD-10 that takes place October 1, 2015. Clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups will be watching to see whether physicians include appropriate ICD-10 codes on lab test forms for Medicare patients.
The Medicare program requires appropriate ICD codes on medical laboratory test claims for Medicare patients. That is one reason why clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology are financially vested in a smooth conversion process. All Medicare Part B claims for medical laboratory tests must be submitted with an appropriate International Classification of Diseases (ICD) code provided by the physician who ordered the lab tests. The Medicare program will not reimburse lab test claims without an appropriate ICD code. No code, no payment to the lab, even though it did the test.
Mark Roth, Physicians Choice Laboratory Service Vice President of Operations, and a speaker at this year’s Dark Report Executive War College, predicts ICD-10 implementation will increase claims denials by 20%.
“People really need to plan ahead for [reduced] cash flows in October and November,” Roth told Dark Daily. “If your Medicare denials go through the roof, all your commercial payer denials are probably going to go through the roof as well. Extending your DSO (Days Sales Outstanding) from 45 to 55 days has a material financial impact.” (more…)
