Emory University Hospital in Atlanta was thrust into the international spotlight in the summer of 2014 as the world anxiously watched first one, then two, then three humanitarian workers infected with the Ebola virus return from West Africa to the United States for treatment as the months dragged on and public anxiety soared. The fourth patient treated at Emory was a nurse who became infected while caring for an Ebola patient at a Texas hospital.
In an effort to accommodate the latest advances in technology and make the code set easier to modify for future technological changes, the AMA extensively overhauled codes for reporting drug testing in the 2015 CPT® Manual.
Most coding professionals have heard modifier -59 (distinct procedural service) referred to as a modifier of last resort and to be cautious in using this modifier.
Mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare industry are often decided upon and negotiated by C-suite staff with involvement from security and IT professionals. However, significant security implications must be considered by both parties prior to, during, and after a merger or acquisition.
