Introduction
Admission Hour Code 15 indicates that a patient was formally admitted to the facility between the hours of 03:00 PM and 03:59 PM. This code is reported in Field 13: Admission Hour to document the specific time of day the inpatient stay or outpatient observation began.
Usage
This code is used by acute care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and other institutional providers to track patient volume and resource utilization during the mid-afternoon shift. It applies to all patients regardless of whether they entered through the emergency department, a scheduled surgical intake, or a direct physician referral.
Billing Impact
While the admission hour itself does not typically change the DRG assignment, accurate reporting is essential for audit trails and to justify the medical necessity of the first day of room and board charges.
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