NextGen Knowledge Center

Anesthesia Rounding

If Anesthesia SIM codes with Base Units are set up in the Service Items Library for billing in NextGen® Enterprise PM, then the following Anesthesia Rounding options should be defined for each payer.
For more information on Anesthesia Billing, go to the NextGen Healthcare Success Community and download the Anesthesia Billing User Guide for NextGen® Enterprise PM.
FieldDescription
Anesthesia Minutes Per UnitEnter the number of minutes, between 5 and 60, that make up one anesthesia time unit for the payer. The default value is 15.

The below examples illustrate how time units would be calculated for a 60 minute anesthesia procedure:

60 minutes / 5 minutes per unit = 12 time units

60 minutes / 10 minutes per unit = 6 time units

60 minutes / 15 minutes per unit = 4 time units

60 minutes / 20 minutes per unit = 3 time units

60 minutes / 30 minutes per unit = 2 time units

60 minutes / 60 minutes per unit = 1 time unit

Anesthesia Rounding MethodSelect how time units are to be rounded for the payer based on the total number of minutes entered for an anesthesia procedure.

Time units are calculated for the payer by dividing the total time in minutes by theAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit. The time units are then rounded based on the method selected here.

ForBasic Anesthesia Billing, rounding of time units occurs during charge posting. ForAnesthesia Concurrency Billing, rounding of time units occurs during the Anesthesia Concurrency Audit process.

Rounding options include the following:
  • Always Round Down:The number of time units are rounded down to the previous whole number. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit= 15:

    • 35 minutes divided by 15 = 2.333, which rounds down to 2 time units.

    • 55 minutes divided by 15 = 3.666, which rounds down to 3 time units.

  • Always Round Up:The number of time units are rounded up to the next whole number. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit = 15:

    • 35 minutes divided by 15 = 2.333, which rounds up to 3 time units.

    • 55 minutes divided by 15 = 3.666, which rounds up to 4 time units.

  • Exact units to the first decimal place:The number of time units are rounded to the first decimal place. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit = 15:

    • 36 minutes divided by 15 = 2.4 time units. No additional rounding is necessary.

    • 37 minutes divided by 15 = 2.466, which rounds to 2.5 time units.

  • Exact units to the second decimal place:The number of time units are rounded to the second decimal place. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit = 15:

    • 36 minutes divided by 15 = 2.40 time units. No additional rounding is necessary.

    • 37 minutes divided by 15 = 2.466, which rounds to 2.47 time units.

  • Round Down at 4 Up at 5:If the remaining minutes after the division is 4 or less, the number of time units rounds down. If the remaining minutes is 5 or more, the number of time units rounds up. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit = 15:

    • 49 minutes divided by 15 = 3 whole units and 4 remaining minutes, so the time units round down to 3 units.

    • 51 minutes divided by 15 = 3 whole units and 6 remaining minutes, so the time units round up to 4 units.

  • Round Down at 7 Up at 8 (default):This is the default setting for all payers. If the remaining minutes after the division is 7 or less, the number of time units rounds down. If the remaining minutes is 8 or more, the number of time units rounds up. The following examples useAnesthesia Minutes Per Unit = 15:

    • 37 minutes divided by 15 = 2 whole units and 7 remaining minutes, so the time units round down to 2 units.

    • 39 minutes divided by 15 = 2 whole units and 9 remaining minutes, so the time units round up to 3 units.