Where the place of departure is specified by the Policy, and the ship instead of sailing from tat place sails from any other port, the risk does not attach.
Insurance Encyclopedia
Altering patient records
Unethical and illegal practice of changing or adding an amendment to a patient’s medical records either to obtain more reimbursement or due to a pending audit or legal review of records.
Alternate beneficiary
Individual entitled to the proceeds of a life insurance policy if no primary beneficiary is living when the insured dies. Also called contingent beneficiary, secondary beneficiary, or successor beneficiary.
Alternate delivery system (ADS)
1. Any health care delivery system other than traditional fee-for-service (e.g., health maintenance organization [HMO], preferred provider organization [PPO], individual practice association [IPA]). 2. Provision of health services in settings that are more cost effective than an inpatient, acute-care hospital such as skilled and intermediate nursing facilities, hospice program, and in-home services.
Alternate Delivery Systems
Health services provided in other than an inpatient, acute-care hospital, day care hospital, which are designed to provide needed services in a more cost-effective manner.
Alternate financing mechanism
See: alternative funding mechanism.
Alternate treatment plan
Strategy for treatment of a patient other than in a hospital.
Alternate valuation date
For tax purposes, the value of a decedent’s estate is made as of the date of death. However, the estate executor may elect to value all estate assets 6 months from the date of death, the alternate valuation date.
Alternative basis clause
A business interruption policy clause to provide the insured with an alternative basis for adjusting a claim when the interruption is short and the turnover method impractical. The practice is for the insurer and the loss adjuster to calculate the loss on a ‘sales value of output’ basis, provided that the lost output cannot be regained within the indemnity period. Insurers are sufficiently flexible in their approach to allow this practice to be adopted even if the clause is not included.
Alternative billing codes (ABCs)
System of coding for integrative health care that consists of five-character alphabetic symbols with appended two-character practitioner modifiers that represent the practitioner type. These codes represent more than 4000 integrative health care products and services (Box A-2 ). ABC codes include the following specialty areas: acupuncturist, body work, chiropractic, conventional nursing, indigenous medicine, mental health care, minority health care, oriental medicine, physical medicine, spiritual and prayer-based healing, Ayurvedic medicine, botanical medicine, clinical nutrition, holistic dentists and physicians, homeopathy, massage therapy, midwifery, naturopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, and somatic educational. ABCs were used to bill for these services as a pilot study maintained by Alternative Link, Inc. As of October 16, 2006, Alternative Link discontinued its pilot study. Covered entities under HIPAA may not use the codes in HIPAA transactions but may use the codes for non-HIPAA transactions. Also called advanced billing concept (ABC) codes. See also integrative health care and alternative medicine. Website: www.alternativelink.comBox A-2ABC CODE WITH MODIFIERThe following description illustrates the coding hierarchy of ABC code with modifier:CEBAM-1G High-risk pregnancy identification, Antepartum, Midwifery, Practice specialties