Medical Economics had this very uninteresting article recently called Advance care planning coding: answers to common questions. Why mention it to you on a DPC site? Well, I just wanted to highlight what you are missing out on by leaving the FFS system.
Practitioners are advised to consult their Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) regarding documentation requirements. While CMS has not issued specific requirements, it has suggested the following as examples of appropriate documentation:
– an account of the discussion with the beneficiary (or family members and/or surrogate) regarding the voluntary nature of the encounter;
– documentation indicating the explanation of advance directives (along with completion of those forms, when performed);
– who was present; and
Got it? But wait, there are more questions they go over:
- Can I report code 99497 for advance care planning (ACP) when the time of service is 20 minutes rather than the 30 minutes listed in the code descriptor?
- Can ACP codes be billed on the same date as an annual wellness visit (G0438 or G0439)?
- Can the ACP codes be used with other Evaluation and Management (E/M) codes?
There are at least ten more questions in the article. Each one makes you care less and less about this whole process.
Now, imagine not having to do any of this crap? You would do the advance care planning because it is right for the patient and not to make third parties happy.
This is direct primary care.