ICD-10 update: Is your chiropractic practice ready for October 2014?

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On Oct. 1, 2014, all healthcare providers will be required to switch to the ICD-10 diagnostic coding system. ICD-10 was implem
ented by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1993, and to date it is used in almost every country in the world except the United States.

According to experts, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) decided to transition to the new coding standard because, simply put, ICD-9 is outdated. ICD-10 will allow for more complete analysis of disease patterns and treatment outcomes, especially when you consider the power of today’s computer technology.

But what exactly is ICD-10, and how can you prepare now for its arrival? How does it differ from ICD-9, and what kind of training will your staff need in order to transition to the new set of coding standards successfully?

ICD-10-CM (the clinical modification set of codes, which includes outpatient services) is actually very similar to ICD-9-CM. The guidelines and rules are similar, as is organization of the codes. According to information on the AAPC website, anyone who can code ICD-9-CM should be able to transition to coding ICD-10-CM fairly easily.[/fusion_text][/three_fifth][two_fifth last=”yes” spacing=”yes” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” class=”” id=””][imageframe lightbox=”no” style_type=”none” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” borderradius=”0″ stylecolor=”” align=”none” link=”” linktarget=”_self” animation_type=”0″ animation_direction=”down” animation_speed=”0.1″ class=”” id=””] [/imageframe][/two_fifth][fusion_text]

The American Medical Association (AMA) has published a free white paper that outlines the expected benefits of ICD-10, particularly as they relate to the use of electronic health record (EHR) and practice management systems. Additionally, AMA has outlined some key steps you need to take in order to be ready for this change:

Talk to your payers – Be sure to discuss with your payers any changes related to diagnosis coding that might impact your reimbursements. You can refer to the AMA’s Payer Reimbursement Tip Sheet for more information.

Determine training needs — Your staff will need to be trained on ICD-10. You can start assessing who will need to be trained and how much training they will need by reading the AMA’s Training Needs ICD-10 Tip Sheet.

Assess your documentation – ICD-10 codes will reflect more specific information about diagnoses than did ICD-9, so be sure you know how to adjust your documentation to capture the data needed for your chiropractic practice. AMA’s Documentation Assessment Tip Sheet provides more information.

Talk to your vendors — Most practices will require some sort of update to their EHR and practice management systems. Be sure to contact your vendor as soon as possible to determine any needed upgrades. Use the AMA’s Vendor ICD-10 Tip Sheet to assist you.[/fusion_text]