The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is used to assess reduced levels of consciousness in patients. It is the most reliable way to objectively record the initial and subsequent level of consciousness in a person after a brain injury. It is comprised of three components that are considered separately and summed: eye opening (E), verbal response (V), and motor responses (M). The GCS provides a score in the range of 3 (deep coma or brain death) – 15 (fully awake and aware), and patients that have a score of 3-8 are usually defined as being in a coma. Please pay close attention to physician’s documentation in order to capture the accurate GCS score. If documentation does NOT state the total coma score, then a diagnosis code from subcategory R40.24 should NOT be assigned.

This equation simply states that the eye opening measured at a level 2, verbal response measured at a level 4, and motor response measured at a level 6. The sum of all three components results in a total of 12. The number 12 is the GCS score for this patient.

Spinal Fusion coding can be an area of apprehension for a lot of coders! Coding opportunities sometimes are buried within the body of operative reports which makes it even more challenging. First and foremost, be sure to read the entire report to capture all pertinent codes.

Consider the following snippet, which comes from an actual operative report and supports the assignment of 0SG0071 (fusion of lumbar vertebral joint with autologous tissue substitute, posterior approach, posterior column, open approach):

“I then loaded the tulip-heads onto the screw shanks, and I then placed a Creo addition titanium rod. Posterior instrumentation replaced from the L3-4 interspace modular loading cross connector to L1 pedicle screw. I contoured lordosis in the back table before placement into the Tulip head. Final tightened compressed at L1-2. I used a high-speed bur to decorticate the facet on the left side at L1-2, and the transverse process bilaterally of L1-L2 and placed local bone and osteosurge to complete a posterolateral fusion.”

Telehealth services allow a physician or other approved licensed care provider with the ability to provide services and effectively communicate with their patients via secure telecommunication devices. As of April 30, 2020, CMS has expanded the list of approved telehealth services to include physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), and speech therapy (ST). Please be sure to check with individual third-party payers about their policies in order to receive full reimbursement.

Pleural effusion is a typical disorder that is seen in patients who have congestive heart failure. It is an abnormal accumulation of fluid within the pleural space. If the physician completes therapeutic intervention or diagnostic testing for the pleural effusion, then it is acceptable to report it as a secondary diagnosis. If the physician does NOT specifically evaluate or treat the pleural effusion separately from the congestive heart failure, then it should NOT be reported as a secondary diagnosis.

When a patient presents to the hospital for treatment of multiple injuries, it is appropriate to code all of the injuries for accurate reporting purposes. All of the injuries should be reported separately unless there is a combination diagnosis code provided for those conditions. The injury that is sequenced first is the injury that is determined by the physician and focus of treatment to be the most serious.

Starting April 1, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) implemented a brand new ICD-10-CM diagnosis code: U07.0, vaping-related disorder. This is being implemented now due to the recent occurrences of vaping related disorders. For all discharge dates on or after April 1, U07.0 will be sequenced as the primary diagnosis IF the physician’s documentation states that the vaping caused the patient’s current condition. It is then followed by that condition as a secondary diagnosis code.

If a patient is admitted to a hospital with a pressure ulcer that progresses during the patient’s stay to another severity, then it’s appropriate to report two separate diagnosis codes. The first code is for the site and severity of the ulcer that was present on admission, and the second one is for the severity level that was reported during the stay.

On April 7, 2020, CMS proposed a new Families First Coronavirus Response Act. This act waives co-insurance and deductibles for additional COVID-19 related services. Under this act, CMS requires modifier CS applied to applicable institutional and non-institutional claim lines to identify that the service is subject to the cost-sharing waiver for COVID-19 testing-related services. This ensures that Medicare members are NOT charged any co-insurance or deductibles for those services as well.

When COVID-19 meets the definition for principal diagnosis, it should be sequenced first followed by all other appropriate secondary diagnoses. There is an exception for sepsis, obstetric, and newborn patients. However, if sepsis does NOT meet the guidelines for principal diagnosis, it should be sequenced as a secondary diagnosis. Please see the example below: