In general anesthesia cases, a patient becomes unconscious or unable to respond for any portion of the procedure. However, some gastroenterology practices instead document cases like these as monitored anesthesia care, according to Anesthesia Business Consultants President and CEO Tony Mira.
An endoscopy center may document GA cases as MAC cases if the facility isn't prepared to recover patients from a general anesthetic, Mr. Mira said — and many centers are not.
Generally, there's no difference in payment for the two different modes of anesthesia. Still, Mr. Mira said, practices should "call it what it is and do it consistently," to avoid sending patients a mixed message and to accurately reflect clinical decision-making.