Reference guides for the operational side of orthopedics
The rules that shape an orthopedic practice's phones, schedule, and revenue — global periods, diagnosis codes, modifiers, prior auth — explained in plain language by a team that builds scheduling AI around them every day.
Practical references, not textbooks
These guides exist because ClinicFlow's voice AI has to get this stuff right on live phone calls: a post-op patient calling for a follow-up must be scheduled inside the global period, a referral for an MRI has to account for prior auth, and the front desk shouldn't have to memorize modifier rules to understand why a claim bounced. We wrote down the working rules we build against. They're free, no email gate.
Global Periods in Orthopedics
What 0-, 10-, and 90-day global periods mean for scheduling follow-ups, injections, and returns to the OR — and the common scheduling mistakes that create denials.
Read the global periods guide →Common Orthopedic ICD-10 Codes
The musculoskeletal diagnosis codes ortho practices use most, organized by body region, with plain-language notes on laterality and specificity.
Browse ICD-10 codes →Billing Modifiers, Plain English
The 12 modifiers that do the most work in orthopedic billing — 25, 59, 24, 57, 50, LT/RT and friends — with ortho-specific examples of when each applies.
Read the modifier guide →Prior Authorization Guide
What typically requires prior auth in orthopedics, the documentation payers expect, realistic timelines, and how practices are automating the busywork.
Read the prior auth guide →Phone & Front-Office Glossary
Terms from the patient-access world — abandonment rate, warm transfer, eligibility, triage — defined for orthopedic practice teams.
Browse the glossary →Calculators & Self-Tests
Run your own numbers: the missed-call revenue calculator, the after-hours coverage test, and the AI readiness score.
Missed-call calculator →Why a phone-AI company publishes billing references
Because scheduling and billing are the same system. A follow-up booked as a new visit inside a global period becomes a denial. An injection series scheduled off-cadence becomes a medical-necessity problem. An MRI booked before its auth clears becomes a patient callback and a reschedule. ClinicFlow's scheduling agent encodes these rules so the phone call and the claim agree with each other — these pages document the rules themselves.
These references are educational summaries, not billing, coding, or legal advice. Payer policies vary and change; verify against current CMS files and your payer contracts.
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