Trafficking-specific ICD-10-CM codes account for physical, social, and psychological dimensions of trafficked patients’ experiences. Data collected by clinicians can also motivate improvements in health policy, resource allocation, and prevention.
AMA J Ethics. 2018;20(12):E1143-1151. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2018.1143.
Upcoding and misrepresenting clinical information constitute fraud, cost a lot, and can result in patient harm and unnecessary procedures and prescriptions.
AMA J Ethics. 2020;22(3):E221-231. doi:
10.1001/amajethics.2020.221.
The picture that emerges from study of physician economic behavior is mixed, but from the intensity of responses by some professional societies to Medicare's coding modifier proposal, it appears that economic incentives matter a lot to many of their members.
Although not everything on the Choosing Wisely lists is likely to reduce low-value care, it is a good starting point for a conversation about curtailing low-value interventions.