PAR Registration Procedures 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which type of admission requires a physician's order and is planned in advance?
- Emergency admission
- Elective admission (Correct answer)
- Urgent admission
- Observation admission
Correct answer: Elective admission
An elective admission is scheduled in advance based on the patient's condition and does not require immediate intervention.
Question 2: What does the abbreviation 'COB' stand for in the context of patient registration?
- Certificate of Birth
- Coordination of Benefits (Correct answer)
- Confirmation of Billing
- Cost of Benefits
Correct answer: Coordination of Benefits
Coordination of Benefits (COB) determines the order in which multiple insurance plans pay when a patient has more than one payer.
Question 3: A patient's insurance card lists a different employer group number than what is in the system. The PAR should:
- Use the number in the system because it was entered by a previous registrar
- Update the group number based on the current card after verifying with the payer if needed (Correct answer)
- Leave both numbers in the notes field
- Ask the patient to contact their employer and return another day
Correct answer: Update the group number based on the current card after verifying with the payer if needed
The most current insurance card should be used as the primary source; updating the group number prevents claim denials.
Question 4: An 'occurrence code' in facility billing is used to:
- Indicate the patient's diagnosis
- Report a specific event or condition that affects claims processing (Correct answer)
- Identify the attending physician
- Describe the type of room the patient occupied
Correct answer: Report a specific event or condition that affects claims processing
Occurrence codes notify the payer of specific events (e.g., accident date, Medicare eligibility) that may affect claim adjudication.
Question 5: When registering a patient under observation status, which statement is most accurate?
- Observation status is identical to inpatient status for billing purposes
- Observation patients are classified as outpatients and may have different cost-sharing responsibilities (Correct answer)
- Observation status always converts to inpatient admission after 24 hours
- Medicare does not cover observation services
Correct answer: Observation patients are classified as outpatients and may have different cost-sharing responsibilities
Observation status is billed as an outpatient service, which can result in different cost-sharing than inpatient stays under Medicare and other payers.
Question 6: Which federal law requires hospitals to inform patients of their rights, including the right to refuse treatment?
- COBRA
- EMTALA
- The Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA) (Correct answer)
- The False Claims Act
Correct answer: The Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA)
The Patient Self-Determination Act requires healthcare facilities to inform patients of their rights to accept or refuse treatment and to create advance directives.
Question 7: A patient states they are covered under their spouse's employer plan as a dependent. Which insurance should typically be billed first?
- The patient's own individual policy
- The spouse's employer group plan as primary (Correct answer)
- Medicare if the patient is over 65
- Medicaid always pays first
Correct answer: The spouse's employer group plan as primary
When a patient is a dependent on a spouse's employer group plan and has no own policy, the spouse's plan is billed as primary.
PAR Registration Procedures 3
Which type of admission requires a physician's order and is planned in advance?