Understanding E/M: Count the minutes with care to report split/shared office visits in 2021

Why This Topic Matters

Accurate time counting affects office visit code selection and compliance when more than one practitioner participates in care. The article helps readers understand the general approach to split/shared office visit time reporting and why careful internal time studies may be important for practices.

Article Sections

1. Time-based office visit reporting

   Introduces time-based evaluation and management reporting for office visits and the kinds of activities that may be considered in that framework.

2. Split/shared visit time counting

   Explains how time is considered when a physician and a non-physician practitioner both participate in a visit. The discussion focuses on separate versus shared time and the issue of duplicate counting.

3. Scenario and timing table

   Presents a sample office visit timing scenario and a reference table showing the applicable office visit code families and time bands.

4. Answer

   Provides the reported result for the sample scenario and briefly notes the treatment of clinical staff time and practice-level time studies.

5. Editor’s note

   Contains promotional information about a related webinar and ordering details.