Managing the transition to ICD-10

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• The transition from the ICD-9 medical coding
  system to ICD-10 will have a profound impact on
  all HIPAA-compliant businesses and organizations.
  In addition to adding thousands of new medical
  codes, ICD-10 also introduces a new coding
  structure, more documentation, and changes to
  software and information technology.

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• ICD-10 is set to go into effect on October 1st,
  2015. Once it does, some of the changes that will
  go into effect include
• Increasing the number of diagnosis codes from
  around 13,000 to around 68,000, and the number of
  procedure codes from 11,000 to 72,000.
• Switching from codes that are 3-5 digits long to
  codes that are 3-7 digits.
• Changing from a primarily numeric form of code to
  an alpha-numeric one.

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Because of the scope of the changes between
ICD-10 and ICD-9, the upgrade will require
attentive oversight from medical practices
senior management. Changes will need to be made
that include staff retraining, updates to
workflow and IT systems, and bringing EHR
(electronic health record) systems into
compliance with the new medical coding scheme.
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• In order to work with ICD-10, medical practices
  internal workflows and IT systems will need to be
  able to accommodate the changes. Questions that
  practice managers need to ask themselves include
• How will workflows change with the introduction
  of ICD-10?
• Can existing IT infrastructure process the new
  medical coding scheme?
• What changes need to be made to both to make the
  transition as smooth as possible?

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Practices that have already adopted EHR
(electronic health record) systems will need to
confirm that their existing system will be able
to handle the transition to ICD-10. Those
practices that have not yet adopted an EHR system
will need to find one that can handle both ICD-9
and ICD-10, so that both old and new records can
be uploaded without issue.
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The transition to ICD-10 will also lead to a
likely increase in documentation costs for
physicians. According to a study by Nachimson
Advisors, LLC, the cost of documentation
activities is likely to increase by between 15
and 20 for most practices, while the amount of
time doctors spend on documentation will increase
3 to 4.1 Other related expenses include manuals,
training materials, software and IT upgrade
costs, and employee retraining.
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Due to the extensive changes to medical coding
with ICD-10, employees who are required to know
and/or be certified in medical coding will have
to be retrained. It is in practices best
interests to enroll their key staff members in
medical coding classes ASAP, if they have not
already done so. AAPC Certified Coders will have
to pass another proficiency exam to retain
certification. They must demonstrate proficiency
by no later than December 31st 2015.
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Making sure that staff members are trained in
ICD-10 will not just make the transition
smoother, it will also save medical practices
money. Because of the increased specificity of
ICD-10 medical codes, practices will have to
include more detailed descriptions to insurance
providers to get their reimbursements in a timely
manner. Getting staff trained in ICD-10 will
prevent miscommunications, stop errors from
occurring, and protect the financial stability of
medical practices.
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LS Coding Education LLC offers code training
and certification classes that combine the
convenience of e-learning with the educational
experience of sitting in an actual classroom. For
more information or to sign up for our medical
coding classes, visit certifiedcodertraining.com
today.