Inpatient or outpatient booking of a patient to a facility whose condition allows adequate time to schedule admission. Formal acceptance may be dependent on when the accommodations become available.

Medical service or procedure that is optional and could be scheduled such as surgery for cosmetic reasons, sterilization surgery, or elective abortion.

In an employee’s retirement plan, cash or deferred dollar amount put into an employee’s Section 401(k) plan by the employer. Contributions are made using before-tax dollars that are obtained through a voluntary reduction of the employee’s salary. The employee pays taxes when the funds are paid out at retirement time, making it a tax-deferred system. Also called elective deferrals .

Surgical procedure that may be scheduled in advance, is not an emergency, and is discretionary on the part of the physician and patient. Generally, elective surgery is required and may be major surgery.

Procedure codes related to nerve conduction studies, needle electromyography, and neuromuscular junction testing. Because bundling rules may affect payment, these tests must be comprehensively and accurately documented. Also see electrodiagnostic (EDX) medicine .

Medical tests that include nerve conduction studies, needle electromyography, and neuromuscular junction testing for diagnosing motor neuron diseases, myopathies, radiculopathies, plexopathies, neuropathies, and neuromuscular junction disorders (e.g., myasthenia gravis and myasthenic syndrome). EDX studies are used to evaluate tumors involving an extremity, the spinal cord, or the peripheral nervous system.

Insurance claim submitted to the insurance carrier by a provider of medical services or electronic media claim (EMC) vendor transmitted via a central processing unit (CPU), tape, diskette, direct data entry, direct wire, dial-in telephone, digital fax, or personal computer download or upload.

Insurance claims prepared on a computer and submitted via modem (telephone lines) to the insurance carrier’s computer system. Also called electronic media claims (EMC) .