Barbara,

When I spoke to the Medicare intermediary, she stated that the way it's coded looked like the patient came back to the hospital on the second day for more observation. She wanted me to submit supporting documentation.

I didn't understand that request as I knew of the codes 99234-36 and that's not what was being billed. I'm willing to believe that the rep didn't know what she was talking about. I didn't want to go into detail with her in case it was coded incorrectly and these conversations always end with "we can't tell you how to bill".

Is it commonplace for the carrier to request supporting documentation for more than 1 day of observation? This is the first time my doctor has had someone in observation for more than 1 day. Thank you.
-- Scott