The recent buzz surrounding changes to the ICD-10-CM guidelines have many wondering why we appear to be taking a step backward from quality instead of elevating standards with language indicating that physicians don’t need to document to meet clinical indicators or support conditions with their documentation.

Physician practices have had nearly a year to acclimate themselves to the ICD-10 coding that took effect in October 2015. Thanks to a grace period known as ICD-10 “relaxed rules,” which were established jointly by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the American Medical Association (AMA), the use of ICD-10 codes that did not meet the highest level of specificity requirements was allowed to continue without the risk of punitive action.