Question
Will the new ICD 10 for hearing loss include severity, not just the type of hearing loss?
Answer
What I have seen this far primarily focuses on types of hearing loss. While I have not seen the entire code taxonomy yet, there are new codes in the ICD system that are pretty much classifications with somewhat more detail. Severity of hearing loss may be included before it is all said and done. There is certainly room within the system to add much greater detail, but that's a question I need to defer for the moment until more of the taxonomy is released for public viewing. Even if degree of hearing loss is included in ICD 10, I still expect some level of classification of function to be incorporated simply because severity does not tell you what they are able to do in terms of engaging in life's activities. You can have two people with moderate hearing loss, and one handles hearing loss very well with very little impact overall. The other person is absolutely devastated by the hearing loss to the point that they cannot engage in many of the familiar activities that they used to. This is why I still expect some kind of functional scale to be introduced. From a therapy perspective, functional scales are already being introduced into Medicare treatments, so the foundation is there to expand to a wider array of areas.
Editor's Note: This Ask the Expert was taken from the eSeminar Reimbursement: The 2012 Perspective published on 2/9/2012. To access the recorded course, please go here: www.audiologyonline.com/ceus/recordedcoursedetails.asp?class_id=19955
Robert C. Fifer, Ph.D. is currently the Director of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology at the Mailman Center for Child Development, Department of Pediatrics, University of Miami School of Medicine. He received his B.S. degree from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in Speech-Language Pathology with a minor in Deaf Education. His M.A. degree is from Central Michigan University in Audiology. And his Ph.D. degree is from Baylor College of Medicine in Audiology and Bioacoustics. Dr. Fifer's clinical and research interests focus on the areas of auditory evoked potentials, central auditory processing, early detection of hearing loss in children, and auditory anatomy and physiology. He is a Past-President of the Florida Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists, a member of ASHA's Health Care Economics Committee, and the ASHA representative to the American Medical Association's Health Care Professions Advisory Committee for the Relative Value Utilization Committee in addition to being ASHA's representative to the AMA's Practice Expense Advisory Committee. Additional responsibilities at the state level include serving as a consultant to the Florida Department of Health's Children's Medical Services and the audiology representative to the Genetics and Newborn Screening Advisory Council.
