Q&A From APA's Help Line Database: Billing Medicare Patients for Missed Sessions

Q. I have a Medicare patient who consistently misses appointments without calling to cancel. I know I can't bill Medicare for the sessions, but am I permitted to charge this patient a missed-session fee?

A. As long as the missed-session fee applies to all your patients and you can establish that the Medicare patient was aware of it, you may bill the patient directly for this fee. Medicare permits you to charge your standard missed-appointment fee since it is a physician fee that Medicare does not cover. If you have an office policy of billing for missed appointments, it would be smart to have your patients sign an acknowledgment of this policy and keep it with their medical record so there will be no question that billing for missed appointments is appropriate.