Coding clinic

As a hospitalist, he has to play along. it would be nice if one of the major medical groups would push an alternative simple, sensible coding system to the government.

A time based system for E & M services could replace the entire E & M section of the CPT manual with the following paragraph:

Documentation reguirement: Start time when the physician picks up the chart to begin providing an episode of continuous service, followed by whatever documentation is otherwise professionally required in the encounter, ending with stop time when he puts down the chart ending the episode of care and it’s documentation.