In this blog post, Valant discusses the ICD-10 code for Altered Mental Status. Altered mental status, unspecified (R41.82) is a billable ICD-10 diagnostic code under HIPAA regulations from October 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021. This code is acceptable to insurers when used to describe a marked change in mental health status not attributable to...
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If your practice hasn’t started administering outcome measures or using measurement-based care, you should be. Why? Not only is it rapidly becoming the standard of care, but it allows you to achieve better patient outcomes faster, and you can get paid more for using it. Measurement-based care is defined as the systematic administration of symptom...
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Measurement-based care is a term that’s been around since 2006, yet remains unfamiliar to many behavioral health professionals still today. It is defined as the systematic administration of symptom rating scales and other assessment tools to help initially assess behavioral health patients, inform beginning and ongoing treatment decisions, improve treatment outcomes, and measure results. How...
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Accepting credit card payments is a necessary part of business even in the behavioral health field. Your business might have a mix of clients including those who pay a co-payment, those who pay out-of-pocket, or those who may never pay you directly. No matter what the mix, you want to provide an exceptional client experience...
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In pursuit of continued self-education within the field, many psychologists and therapists turn to magazines, podcasts, and other timely resources to stay up to date on the ever-changing field of psychology and behavioral health. A quick Google search, however, can return an overwhelming number of results online, and professionals in all industries can find themselves...
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Outcome measures have been talked about in the behavioral health field for over 20 years yet only 18% of psychiatrists and 11% of psychologists in the US routinely use outcome measures (Fortney, Sladek, & Unützer, 2015). There is a lot of evidence that suggests that using outcome measures to track and provide feedback on patient...
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With reimbursement rates always under threat, behavioral health practitioners in private practice might find themselves at a disadvantage when negotiating higher rates. Larger organizations can afford to hire third-party negotiators to handle it for them but as the person wearing all the hats, you might not know where, how, or when to start. Many behavioral...
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What Your Behavioral Health Practice Needs to Know You’ve likely heard about the recent changes to the CPT code set and are wondering what it means for your behavioral health practice. How will these modifications affect your coding practices? Are there any immediate actions you need to take? Is there anything you need to do...
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Remote work is a thing we’ve all become very familiar with within the age of COVID. However, working remotely as a therapist or psychiatrist can present a unique set of challenges. From ensuring you have the proper telemedicine technology, abiding by all HIPAA regulations in a virtual setting, and maintaining a personal connection with your...
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Frequently, we are asked “Can my practice be compliant with Cures Act when using Valant?”. The short answer is Yes. Here, we’ll explain what Cures Act is and what you need to know when evaluating EHR software for your behavioral health practice.   What is the Cures Act? The 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act)...
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