Sometimes the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 is informally pronounced as “bubba.”

Under Medicare, adjustment of payment rates so that total costs are expected to remain the same as under the previous payment rules.

A physician’s justifying the transference of sick, high-cost patients to other physicians in a managed care plan.

1. Alert symbol used in the diagnostic code book titled International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) . It is used to indicate a diagnostic code or line of text that indicates the description is new to that specific annual edition. 2. New code symbol used in the procedure code book titled Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) . It is used to identify a service or procedure code that is new to that specific annual edition. 3. When an audit is taking place, term used to indicate evaluation and management criteria for documenting services rendered. Also known as an element .

1. Collection of several types of health insurance policies under one payer. 2. Inclusive grouping of procedural codes related to medical services when submitting an insurance claim.

Establishing a price for an all-inclusive package or global fee for all medical services needed for specific procedures. Bundled billing may include professional and institutional services that are high-cost or common procedures (e.g., coronary artery bypass graft, kidney transplant, maternity care).

To group more than one component (service or procedure) provided in one day into one CPT code for submission on an insurance claim.

Type of life insurance in which the mortality, investment, and expense factors used to calculate premium rates and cash values are not identified separately in the policy (e.g., traditional whole life insurance).