Novice Know How - How Can You Recognize a Service that is Always "Bundled?"
One of the most common denials for a new provider's claims is for bundled services. One easy way to check if the service you bill is always bundled is to refer to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Database (MPFSDB), also known as the National Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value File. You can view it on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Website at the following address:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/PhysicianFeeSched/PFSRVF/list.asp#TopOfPage 
The MPFSDB Status Code column contains a letter "B" when the code is always bundled. A bundled service means payment for covered services are always included into payment for other services not specified. Assignment of relative value units, payment amount, and separate payment for the code do not occur. When a bundled service is covered, payment for the service is subsumed by the payment for the services to which it is incident. (An example is a telephone call from a hospital nurse regarding care of a patient). You cannot bill the beneficiary for a bundled service.
Updates occur quarterly to the MPFSDB (October, January, April, and July). Be sure to choose and download the applicable file for the date of service.
