Removing a Splinter? Treating a Wart? If a Doctor Does It, It Can Be Billed as Surgery By Elisabeth Rosenthal December 13, 2024

https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/doctor-billing-coding-surgery-profit/?utm_campaign=KHN%20-%20Weekly%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8-8aHhY9iK-fX4Wn9clOwbgpBb2O6Fylp1ol62vBM6At7dU9LbVIoaaSFBIRIRXwZb7ifAbQQKV9LsL89HDrknwb_hvA&_hsmi=338474419&utm_content=338474419&utm_source=hs_email Removing a Splinter? Treating a Wart? If a Doctor Does It, It Can Be Billed as Surgery By Elisabeth Rosenthal Minor interventions are increasingly being rebranded and billed as surgery, for profit. This means a neurologist spending 40 minutes with a patient to tease out a diagnosis can be paid less for that time than a dermatologist spending a few seconds squirting a dollop of liquid nitrogen onto the skin.