I got an email today asking about the consult codes (99241-99245) in the APC payment system.  Specifically, what happened!?!

Well, what happened, actually happened over a year ago.  CMS decided that the consultation codes were "unnecessary and superfluous" and no longer recognizes them in the APC system.  I love that word, superfluous.  There are plenty of parts of CMS that I think are superfluous, but alas, that's for a different day.

Now, nothing happened to the physician's ability to drop a consultation code, though there is a minefield of documentation to mind when doing that inside a wound care center.  However, the facility should use the appropriately mapped clinic visit level for a new (99201-99205) or established patient (99211-99215).