The Changing Seasons Bring the Beginning of ICD Code Revisions
The Changing Seasons Bring the Beginning of ICD Code Revisions
Depending on your location, the spring season brings warmer temperature, green grass or maybe even hurricanes. But wherever you are, spring brings the first sign of new ICD codes that will be implemented in the fall. YES HIM Education regularly releases webinars and learning paths specifically focused on the ICD-10 code revisions every year. Review our Education Services, and request a quote for your education proposal today!
We first see the changes in the Proposed Rule for the Inpatient Prospective Payment System in April. Part of this Rule is the list of code changes for both ICD-10-CM diagnosis and ICD-10-PCS procedure codes. As with all Proposed Rules, there is an assigned period for comments from the public. The Final Rule is published in the summer, these include the final code changes.
All changes are effective on October 1st; the first day of the federal government’s fiscal year- this year is FY 2020. The official addenda for the ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS code sets that include details of all the Tabular and Index changes are also released in the summer, as are any updates to the Official Coding Guidelines for both systems. Coding professionals learn about the new codes and guidelines in time for fall implementation on October 1st.
Though we are just seeing these changes in the spring and know that we must learn about them and be ready to implement on October 1st, we may wonder, where did these come from? And how might we influence the changes ourselves? All code changes begin at a federal meeting that we are all invited to attend, free of charge. Attendants can also watch and listen in live while the meeting is taking place, recordings of the meetings can be also found on YouTube.
What is this meeting that starts a code change?
It is the Coordination and Maintenance Committee (C&M). Code revisions, including additions and even deletions are introduced at the C&M Committee meetings. Held in September and March, in Baltimore, Maryland, these are public meetings co-chaired by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Anyone can attend and participate in these meetings, and advance registration is required. Proposals are introduced, with rationale and recommendations for how the code set should be changed, these suggestions come from various sources; professionals in the field, questions that have been submitted to Coding Clinic and internal review within CMS and NCHS.
The committee meets for two days and generally the procedure proposals for ICD-10-PCS are presented on the first day, with the ICD-10-CM diagnosis proposals on the second day. The meetings feature live presentations, often from the persons or organizations that are proposing the change. These can be fascinating presentations chock full of clinical information. For the PCS proposals, information on the newest technology and procedures being performed.
There is discussion on the need for the new code, current coding practice and proposals for changes to the codes. Members of the audience can ask questions of the clinical presenters or CMS and NCHS staff during the meeting, phone lines are open to accept questions from those watching the sessions online. Participants and other interested parties are encouraged to submit comments for consideration in writing to the NCHS for diagnosis codes and CMS for procedure code updates. No official decisions are made at this meeting, the final decisions on code changes are made by NCHS and CMS.
The Coordination and Maintenance Committee Meeting – March 2019
The most recent C&M meeting was on March 5-6, 2019. Comments on topics covered in these meetings are due by April 5, 2019. During the procedure session, several topics were discussed, see the agenda packet for more information here.
A Great Example of how These Meetings work:
One of the topics was the use of a flow diverter stent to treat unruptured intracranial aneurysms. Unlike a traditional stent that holds vessels open, this mesh-like stent is inserted across the neck of aneurysm to divert blood away. As time goes by the flow diverter device causes thrombosis within the aneurysm. And tissue scaffolding across the neck of the aneurysm itself. This device eliminates the need for coiling of the aneurysm and has been found to be an effective stand-alone procedure.
Since the objective of the procedure is to partially close the lumen of the tubular body part, the Restriction root operation is used. One of the proposals included adding a new device value to the 03V table for Restriction of the upper arteries. Commenters and CMS indicated that they approved of this proposal. The final decision will be made by CMS on the potential new device value and the timing of any change.
In the diagnosis portion of the meeting, several proposals were discussed, see the agenda for more information.
This is just a sample of the discussions from the March 2019 C&M meeting. We will not know until the Proposed rule, whether these proposals or those from earlier C&M meetings will officially become code changes for FY 2020. What we do know, is that almost any code change gets its start at the C&M meeting. And as the seasons change, so do our ICD codes. YES HIM Education regularly releases webinars and learning paths specifically focused on the ICD-10 code revisions every year. Review our Education Services, and request a quote for your education proposal today!
