Ask the Billing Expert

Samuel A. Collins is an expert in chiropractic insurance billing for the H.J. Ross Network, a consulting group for doctors on billing and collection for insurance claims. His background is in the chiropractic profession, where he supervised a high-volume chiropractic clinic for 16 years. You are encouraged to submit billing questions to Mr. Collins at sam@hjrossnetwork.com. Your question may be the subject of a future column.

Previous Articles

Understanding the Medicare HETS

July 1, 2026 (Vol. 44, Issue 7)

Medicare HETS EDI Enrollment Requirement – Effective May 11, 2026

Advance Beneficiary Notice (ABN) Update

June 1, 2026 (Vol. 44, Issue 6)

Should You Adjust Your Fees This Year?

March 1, 2026 (Vol. 44, Issue 3)

Should You Be In-Network or Out-of-Network With Insurance?

January 1, 2026 (Vol. 44, Issue 1)

2026 ICD-10-CM Updates for Chiropractic Practices

Multiple-Procedure Claim Reductions?

August 1, 2025 (Vol. 43, Issue 8)

ICD-10 Coding Updates Affecting Chiropractors

December 1, 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 12)

UHC/Optum Requires Preauthorization for Medicare-Covered Chiropractic Services

November 1, 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 11)

Is Electronic Billing / EHR Mandatory?

September 1, 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 09)

New Medicare Payment Increases Offset Earlier 2024 Reductions

July 1, 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 07)

Requesting a PPO Rate Increase

April 1, 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 04)

CPT Coding Changes for 2024

February 1 2024 (Vol. 42, Issue 02)

Diagnosis Code Updates for DCs

December 1, 2023 (Vol. 41, Issue 12)

Billing Insurance: Getting Started

August 1, 2023 (Vol. 41, Issue 08)

Can You Bill for Extra Effort?

May 1, 2023 (Vol. 41, Issue 05)

Relative Value Units Up for 2023 - But Are You Getting Paid More?

March 1, 2023 (Vol. 41, Issue 03)

When Insurers Try to Get Your Money Back

January 1, 2023 (Vol. 41, Issue 01)

ICD-10 Diagnosis Code Updates

November 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 11)

Diagnosis Denials: "Excludes 1" Codes

September 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 09)

Sequestration: The Reason Why Your Medicare Payment Is Suddenly Lower

July 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 07)

Insurers Are Contacting DCs About Their Coding Patterns

May 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 05)

No Surprises Act Takes Effect

March 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 03)

Medicare Deductible and Rate Changes for 2022

January 1, 2022 (Vol. 40, Issue 01)

Important ICD-10 Coding Changes for Chiropractors

December 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 12)

Accommodating Your Hearing-Impaired Patients

October 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 10)

PT Claims Being Denied – What You Can Do About It

August 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 08)

New Patient Digital Data Access Rule Takes Effect

June 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 06)

Updated E&M Codes a Big Benefit to Chiropractors

April 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 04)

Medicare Advantage and Humana Claims Being Denied

February 1, 2021 (Vol. 39, Issue 02)

Can You Overuse a Modifier? Guidelines for Using 59 vs. XS

December 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 12)

ICD-10 Updates for 2021

October 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 10)

Using the New Medicare ABN

September 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 09)

Insurers Expand Billing Options for Telemedicine

May 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 05)

Billing for Telemedicine Services

May 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 05)

E&M Denials When Billed With CMT: What to Do

March 1, 2020 (Vol. 38, Issue 03)

Code Changes for 2020

December 1, 2019 (Vol. 37, Issue 12)

Clearing Up the Confusion: Medicare Billing for DCs

October 1, 2019 (Vol. 37, Issue 10)

DME Billing Made Easy: The Modifiers That Matter

July 1, 2019 (Vol. 37, Issue 07)

Medicare Billing Done Right (Even in an All-Cash Practice)

May 1, 2019 (Vol. 37, Issue 05)

Getting Claims Paid: Common (& Not-as-Common) Modifiers

March 1, 2019 (Vol. 37, Issue 03)

VA Choice Claims Denied? Here's How You Can Get Paid

December 1, 2018 (Vol. 36, Issue 12)

Important ICD-10 Updates

October 1, 2018 (Vol. 36, Issue 10)

Why the Automatic Denials for Modifiers 25 and 59?

August 1, 2018 (Vol. 36, Issue 08)

VA and Medicare Billing: Case of the Missing Modifier

June 1, 2018 (Vol. 36, Issue 06)

Does # of Services Raise a Red Flag With Insurers?

February 1, 2018 (Vol. 36, Issue 02)

76499: Can I Use This Code?

September 1, 2017 (Vol. 35, Issue 09)

Coding for Maintenance Care

August 1, 2017 (Vol. 35, Issue 08)

Medicare 101: New ABN, Fee Reductions

June 1, 2017 (Vol. 35, Issue 06)

Is the New Medicare Reporting Exemption Right for You?

May 1, 2017 (Vol. 35, Issue 05)

Let's Clear Up the Collection Confusion

February 1, 2017 (Vol. 35, Issue 02)

First Annual ICD-10 Updates Take Effect

November 1, 2016 (Vol. 34, Issue 17)

Code Connection: Guidelines for the Use of Modifier -52

October 1, 2016 (Vol. 34, Issue 16)

Billing One-on-One, Direct Patient Contact

July 1, 2016 (Vol. 34, Issue 13)

Recording and Appropriate Billing of Timed Physical Medicine Services

April 15, 2016 (Vol. 34, Issue 08)

Coding and Billing Updates for Spinal X-Rays

February 15, 2016 (Vol. 34, Issue 04)

ICD-10 Coding Tips: Lesson #1

December 1, 2015 (Vol. 33, Issue 23)

Troubleshooting: Billing Multiple Fees for the Same Service

October 1, 2015 (Vol. 33, Issue 19)

Coding for Functional Performance Testing and Measurements

July 15, 2015 (Vol. 33, Issue 14)

Coding for Strains and Sprains in ICD-10

June 1, 2015 (Vol. 33, Issue 11)

Ringing in the Billing New Year

January 15, 2015 (Vol. 33, Issue 02)

Billing for Same-Visit Extraspinal and Spinal Manipulation

September 1, 2014 (Vol. 32, Issue 17)

Deciphering the New CMS-1500 Claim Form

July 15, 2014 (Vol. 32, Issue 14)

Top 5 Billing Issues for 2014

January 1, 2014 (Vol. 32, Issue 01)

Multi-Therapy Payment Reduction

January 15, 2013 (Vol. 31, Issue 02)

Billing for Groupon-Style Services

November 18, 2012 (Vol. 30, Issue 24)

Billing for Elastic Therapeutic Taping

August 12, 2012 (Vol. 30, Issue 17)

New 5010 Standards, Electronic Health Records and the ICD-10

October 21, 2011 (Vol. 29, Issue 22)

When Is It Appropriate to Use Consultation Codes?

August 12, 2011 (Vol. 29, Issue 17)

Billing for Phone Calls and Communication With Patients and Providers

June 17, 2011 (Vol. 29, Issue 13)

Billing Medicare for Instrument-Assisted Chiropractic Manipulation

February 12, 2011 (Vol. 29, Issue 04)

Minor Code Changes for 2011

January 15, 2011 (Vol. 29, Issue 02)

Billing Q&A: ROM Testing, Record-Keeping, Consultations and More

October 21, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 22)

Billing Flexion-Distraction Services

July 29, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 16)

Dealing With Visit Caps

June 17, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 13)

Billing for Unattended Ultrasound

May 6, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 10)

Insurance Waivers and Maintenance Treatment

March 26, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 07)

Billing for Modalities

February 12, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 04)

Billing Code Updates for the New Year

January 1, 2010 (Vol. 28, Issue 01)

Preventing Identity Theft: What You Need to Do

September 9, 2009 (Vol. 27, Issue 19)

Medicare and Chiropractic: Clearing Up Some Billing Misconceptions

July 15, 2009 (Vol. 27, Issue 15)

Can You Charge for Requests for Records?

July 1, 2009 (Vol. 27, Issue 14)

Coding/Billing for Strapping and Taping

April 9, 2009 (Vol. 27, Issue 08)

New Codes for a New Year

January 15, 2009 (Vol. 27, Issue 02)

Denial for Services Done by Staff

December 2, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 25)

Billing for Service to an Area Not Manipulated

November 18, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 24)

Coding for Active Care

September 23, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 20)

Problems With Medicare Reimbursement

August 12, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 17)

Negotiating for Timely Reimbursement

June 3, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 12)

Medicare Advanced Beneficiary Notice and Maintenance Services

May 20, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 11)

Billing for Missed Appointments

May 6, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 10)

Billing for Low-Level Laser Therapy

April 22, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 09)

How Often to Bill for Re-Exam

April 8, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 08)

Refunds for Expired Policies

February 12, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 04)

New Updates to CPT Codes?

January 29, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 03)

New Diagnostic Codes for the New Year

January 15, 2008 (Vol. 26, Issue 02)

Codes for Soft-Tissue Work

December 3, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 25)

How Do You Code for Spinal Decompression?

November 19, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 24)

Discounting Services for Certain Patients

November 5, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 23)

Billing for Unusual Procedures or Services

October 8, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 21)

Tips on Billing for Multiple Modalities

September 24, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 20)

Is This Double-Dipping?

August 27, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 18)

Billing Secondary Insurance

August 13, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 17)

What Are Bundled Services?

July 16, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 15)

Concurrent Billing of Manual Therapy and Chiropractic Manipulative Therapy

June 18, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 13)

Deadline to Use Updated CMS 1500 Forms Extended – Again

May 21, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 11)

Billing Units of Service: The Element of Time

April 23, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 09)

The "G" Code

April 9, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 08)

Appropriate Billing for Foot Orthotics

March 26, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 07)

Appropriate Billing for Electrical Stimulation

February 26, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 05)

What to Know About Coding Changes for 2007

February 12, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 04)

Demonstrating/Documenting Functional Improvement

January 29, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 03)

Common Errors/Omissions That Will Cause Medicare to Reject Your Claim

January 15, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 02)

Billing Secondary Insurance

January 1, 2007 (Vol. 25, Issue 01)

Indicating Place and Type of Service

December 3, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 25)

Updates to the ICD-9: How Do They Affect Chiropractic?

November 21, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 24)

Can Multiple Services Be Billed in a Single Visit?

November 8, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 23)

Common Codes for Supports and Medical Equipment

October 26, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 22)

Common Modifiers and How to Use Them

October 12, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 21)

Making Sure the Patient Is Covered

September 28, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 20)

Revisions to the CMS1500 Form Are on the Way

September 14, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 19)

Revisions to the CMS1500 Form Are on the Way

September 14, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 19)

Third-Party Fee Reductions

September 1, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 18)

What's My NPI?

August 15, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 17)

Getting Claims Paid on Time

July 30, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 16)

CPT Code Update

July 16, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 15)

Billing for Massage - Specific CPT Codes

July 4, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 14)

Billing for Review of X-Rays

June 20, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 13)

Billing for Sunday Visits and Out-of-Office Visits

June 6, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 12)

Billing for Same-Day Visits and Medicare Documentation

May 22, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 11)

CPT Coding for Massage

May 8, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 10)

Billing for Code 98942

April 24, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 09)

What Code Can I Bill for a Report of Findings?

April 10, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 08)

Billing for Services: The Element of Time

March 26, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 07)

Service/Place of Service Codes

March 12, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 06)

Appropriate Use of Billing Code 97140

February 27, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 05)

Accounting for Extra Time Spent With the Patient

February 13, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 04)

Know Your Billing Codes

January 29, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 03)

Medicare Regulations and Limits on Care

January 15, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 02)

Examination Denials

January 1, 2006 (Vol. 24, Issue 01)