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What are Medical Codes I Need to Know?
What are medical codes, anyway? The entire medical world
works with two types of codes, CPT and ICD-9's. CPT stands
for Common Procedural Terminology. The codes were created to
establish definitions for every possible type of procedure
and visit you could have within the conventional medical
world. While, they are not a perfect fit for the world of
Naturopathic and Chinese medicines, we work within them on a
daily basis. You may only have coverage for a code that
represents an annual preventive health visit, or you may only
see someone as a consultation, not as a primary care giver,
etc. Our front desk staff will be able to give you the most
common codes we use so that you may have better language when
speaking with your insurance company.
The other type of codes are ICD-9 (International
Classification of Diseases, 9th Ed.). They represent all
possible diagnosable medical conditions. Sometimes you will
need to gather your 'diagnoses codes' from the past to
determine if your plan will cover visits relating to those
alone or if your plan has more freedom than that. One example
of this is some insurance plans only allow patients to get a
referral to a Naturopathic Physician for a certain set of
digestive complaints and no other health issues. Another is
that Acupuncture is limited to your current back pain and not
your headaches. This is becoming less and less prominent in
the world as insurances understand our medicine more, but
does still exist.
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5312 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105 Copyright © 2007
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