Make Every Glaucoma Claim Count.(Brief Article)

Be vigilant and accurate when billing, because every nickel and dime matters.

A pediatrician once said to me that we are both in a "nickel-and-dime" business. His implication was that we both bill a relatively large number of CPT codes, typically with smaller reimbursements. And, we need to watch every nickel and dime.

For example, he said, it costs him as much money to dispute a claim for a throat culture as it does for an orthopedic surgeon to dispute a claim for a knee replacement.

So, we must be vigilant and accurate when billing to avoid having to appeal when we file claims incorrectly, or when those claims get paid inappropriately.

Schedule Properly

One big problem O.D.s face, especially when they first begin treating glaucoma, is establishing proper intervals between visits and scheduling follow-up visits appropriately. Make use of an accepted, published guideline such as the AOA's Optometric Clinical Practice Guideline, Care of the Patient with Open Angle Glaucoma.

When first treating glaucoma, don't allow inexperience or unfamiliarity with the disease and treatment turn you into an overutilizer. Billing a patient or third-party payer for extra visits--simply because you do not have a sufficient comfort level dealing with the disease--is inappropriate.