Subcommittee Update - Coding & Reimbursement

Dillon Casey, MD
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Emergency Medicine,
Joseph Byouk, MD
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Emergency Medicine
Joshua Guttman, MD, FRCPC, FAAEM, FACEP
Emory University

The following helped write/update the curriculum itself:

Jacob Schoeneck, MD
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Emergency Medicine
Yue Jay Lin, MD
Mount Sinai

ACEP EUS Coding and Reimbursement Subcommittee is here for you!

We are always open to reimbursement related questions and we update our FAQs throughout the year with any interesting cases or scenarios we encounter!

We’re excited to introduce a two-part curriculum designed to enhance understanding of coding and billing essentials for residents, fellows, and attendings, with a special focus on Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS).

The first installment, Highlighting a Practical Approach to Coding Education in POCUS, featured in this newsletter, delves into Coding Fundamentals, providing a comprehensive overview of key topics:

• CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) basics
• Navigating CMS and the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
• Differentiating Technical and Professional Components
• POCUS-specific CPT codes, modifiers, and exam types
• The Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) process and RVU assignment

The curriculum also includes an appendix featuring POCUS-specific CPT codes for easy reference. Our goal is to demystify coding and equip clinicians with the tools they need to optimize documentation and reimbursement for POCUS services.

Currently the slides and presenter notes are uploaded to our subcommittee page. We will have a recorded lecture/video that can be played to help clarify the content on the slide deck (currently working on this so look for an update in future newsletters). Of course, this will be valuable to anyone wanting to learn the basics of POCUS billing.

Stay tuned for Part 2: Billing Essentials, which will be featured in an upcoming newsletter. For the complete file and detailed content, explore this month’s resources provided below.

Finally, we love to receive your coding and reimbursement questions. Our main job is answering questions as they come up, so don't hesitate to send us an email with any reimbursement inquiries and we are glad to help you out! If you'd like to get involved or have an idea, please reach out. We are always looking for more ideas as well as contributions to the section newsletter. As always, our subcommittee page is chock full of reimbursement goodness so make sure to check it out.