Pathology Billing: Successfully Navigating a “Minefield”
Billing for dermatopathology can often seem like a confusing maze, leading to frustration. One of the reasons is because there is a wide variety of arrangements and options that can be used to appropriately bill for dermatopathology services.
Failing to understand those options that work best for your dermatology practice can risk compliance headaches, leading to potential legal pitfalls and costly fines. For the past 10 years, pathology billing has been under a heightened level of scrutiny due to changing state and federal rules and regulations to curb mark-up arrangements and targeting fraud and abuse schemes.
To help dermatologists and their practice staff better understand which dermatopathology billing approach is appropriate for their practice, the Academy has developed a number of resources. These resources, which range from basic overview to more extensive and technical guidance, should be studied and used by members and their staff to keep the practice away from any legal risk and financial consequences.
The basics include articles published in Dermatology World:
More extensive guidance, which includes a practice management resource and Academy policy statements, can also be found online.
