Optometrist Coding and Billing: Save Time with Code Bundles
Highlights
- Optometrist coding and billing can be time consuming and redundant with an outdated optometry EHR.
- Integrated EHR that uses code bundles simplifies coding and billing for optometry practices.
- RevolutionEHR makes bundling codes easy by customizing lists of common services and codes for every patient encounter.
- Optometrists, practice managers, and staff members can quickly generate code bundles, freeing time to spend with patients.
Optometrist coding and billing can be challenging when you manually search and enter diagnosis codes and repeat the process for every patient encounter and service. Bundled codes as part of a fully integrated optometry EHR system can save you time when looking for and entering codes to apply diagnosis and service codes.
RevolutionEHR’s optometry practice management software increases efficiency by allowing you to use code bundles to enter codes automatically.
Common Issues with Optometrist Coding and Billing
Optometrists must know examination procedure, diagnostic, and therapeutic procedure codes for every encounter to bill patients and send claims. An inefficient optometry EHR can cause optometrists to waste time due to repetitive manual data entry and result in costly billing or coding errors.
Time-Consuming Searches
A patient encounter may have up to four diagnoses, so it can be time consuming for optometrists to look up diagnosis codes in a search bar during patient visits.
In addition, the time spent searching for codes can result in a backlog of patients waiting too long in the reception area. As a result, patients may spend less time shopping in the optical section of your practice after their exams. Wait times also correlate to patient satisfaction. Patients who feel they waited too long may leave poor reviews online, leading to a loss of potential revenue for your practice.
Manual Data Entry Documentation
Optometrists may rely on their coding knowledge and use an outdated, inaccurate EHR to determine the correct codes for an examination. Additionally, ICD-10 guidelines require optometrists to ensure accuracy with their coding.
For example, an optometrist may enter a complication code but fail to document how the condition relates to the care or procedure. ICD-10 guidelines require documentation to support the clinical significance of the disease. The provider does not always have to indicate a complication, but if the condition changes the course of an encounter, a complication code would be appropriate.
Redundancy in Entering the Same Procedures
Documenting a patient’s encounter is essential for optometrist billing and coding, but many standard codes are used across multiple examinations. Errors can occur when optometrists continuously enter repetitive data throughout a patient’s chart.
Errors may include copying and pasting outdated records and entering erroneous examination results. These mistakes cause issues when it comes time to collect reimbursements from payers, who may question the validity of the claims and delay payment.
Simplify Optometrist Coding and Billing with Code Bundles
A code bundle is a combination of two or more codes into a simplified, overarching code. Code bundles help optometrists consolidate services and streamline coding and billing.
With RevolutionEHR’s optometry practice management software, optometrists can use code bundles like a favorites list to quickly and easily apply diagnosis and service codes to patient encounters without manually entering data.
Save Common Diagnosis Codes for Quick Access
Providers frequently provide the same services for many patients with the most common ICD-10 and CPT code bundles. To save time on data entry, they can easily add codes to a list of common services by clicking on the checkbox to include it in a common service list.
Adding this checkbox shows the field for common service descriptions where the optometrist can enter the service-related information and code.
Apply Multiple Diagnoses with the Push of a Button
With RevolutionEHR, you can create custom bundles of codes using any combination of diagnoses and services that fit your practice. For example, an optometrist can easily view and add CPT codes during a patient encounter by accessing the inventory and viewing the services. They can then click on the plus icon to choose a CPT code.
This action adds the new code to the location indicated in the location field on the services dashboard. Adding multiple codes can help you save time with every patient visit.
Reduce Redundancy and Save Time
The manual addition of modifiers to the CPT codes helps your practice efficiently and effectively submit claims for reimbursement. However, this process can be time consuming and prone to error.
Instead, you can add modifiers to your practice inventory and reuse them whenever necessary by selecting from the drop-down menu when you create an invoice.
Provide a Better Patient Experience
Using optometry practice management software that bundles codes can improve the patient experience by eliminating confusion about which codes to use when billing for eye exams and other services. The bundled codes also help ensure that your reimbursements are accurate because they’re linked to specific procedures.
Having fewer codes to enter for each patient visit means less paperwork for your practice and more time to care for patients. As a result, you can improve patient outcomes and create a more positive patient experience.
Streamline Your Practice With RevolutionEHR
Code bundles make the optometrist billing and coding process easier and more efficient. With code bundling, you can apply codes for multiple services in one step.
RevolutionEHR enables you to add diagnoses, services, and codes to streamline your billing and coding. It allows you to reproduce your most common procedures with ease and accuracy.
Our system allows optometrists, practice managers, and staff to quickly create frequently used code bundles, generating accurate insurance claims and minimizing rejections.
Schedule Your RevolutionEHR Demo Today
RevolutionEHR eliminates the hassle of manual coding while streamlining your practice, giving you the freedom to focus on providing clients with the care they deserve.
Schedule a demo today to discover how RevolutionEHR can benefit your practice by simplifying workflows and reducing your staff’s workload.
