How do you document them? Do you just do them as addenda?

I either document them as an addenda or if they came to me in a message from the staff, then I hit refill and close the refill button and the cursor sits on top of the message from the staff just as if replying to an email. Then I make my notes and "save to chart". That way you save what the original message was and what you told the pt.

Bill

I can't recall why hitting refill is better than hitting reply.

Me neither, Bert. I also hit reply, type my note and then save. I also will usually put phone call or something in the subject line so it is easier to find in the future if I ever need to look it up. I usually reserve the addendum option for things I would bill for like an L&I form or a phone call I am billing since it gives you the option of doing a superbill when you signoff.

Are there actually insurance companies that pay for phone calls?
I know there are codes, but didn't think anyone paid.

I have never been paid, even when I tried to bill with the patient's agreement. There is an interesting article about why we should be billing here.

Thanks John,
Look forward to the article.
I am mostly a medicare/medicaid practice.
Even when I know the insurer is not going to pay me for services,
I still submit the charges to help document the work done.
There is so much that we do that we don't get reimbursed for...

I always bill the 3rd party that is requesting the information. Especially since we can't ask a Medicaid patient to give us any money, god forbid.

So, if a school requests a letter clearing an athlete for practice or Penquis Cap asks for records, I send a short letter stating that while I would be happy to send this, I simply can't do it for free. My time is valuable, and I must be reimbursed. Please submit $18.00 (more effective if it is a weird number and not $10, 15 or 20 dollars), and I get that to you in 24 hours. I copy the parent. If the parent calls me demanding I send it, I simply tell them I can't unless the school pays for it.

Works about 70% of the time. Of course, if the parent really pushes it and their child would not be allowed to play, I send it.

The sad situation of it is they want a free letter to cover their medicolegal situation. It works best when it is used with the UCP, Penquis Cap, CHCSs of the world.

I think I have been paid for 2 phone calls now. One was an attorney calling about a patient he was representing and the other was a labor and industry thing where the patient had moved but they wanted my input over the phone. Vicki, I like you idea of documenting the work regardless. We definately are expected to do a lot of work for free. And people wonder why there is a shortage of PCP's!

What's worse is that, if you are one of the "Modern" doctors that actaully tries to ask for payment, people refer to you in nasty terms. Even the same ones who want to be paid for their knowledge and expertise.

If you hit Refill, the Rx window opens, you list a med for refill or a new Rx and the med list stays up to date, then you close the Rx window and the text of the Rx is already in your message. Sweet!

Doesn't it do that in prior versions? I have not yet upgraded.