How to Calculate Productivity for Mental Health Counselors

Resource Based Relative Value Unit (RUV) is the system used to calculate productivity for mental health counselors and all health-care professionals. RVUs are assigned based on three factors: physician work, practice expenses and the cost of liability insurance. Medicare created the system and set up a structure for RVU numbers assigned to procedures. The number of RVUs is multiplied by a universal dollar value and adjustments are made based on locale due to cost-of-living differences. RVU values are reviewed and adjusted annually.

Example: A 50-minute mental health counseling session could be worth 9.1 RUVs and the location factor is 11.3. The two are multiplied, and the result would be $102.83 for the worth of that session. The counselor would have 9.1 productivity value. Each session is then added accordingly to provide the counselor's total productivity for a specified time period.

Things You'll Need

• Specific office protocol for procedures
• Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Manual
• Excel spreadsheet for calculations

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Instructions

• 1

  Determine office protocol for procedures. Most of these codes will be in the evaluation/management (E/M) codes. An example would include code 90806, which covers a 50-minute psychotherapy visit. All CPT codes relevant to mental health counselor procedures should be identified.

• 2

  Develop a method for documenting the codes for calculations. Creating a charge sheet with procedure codes listed is common practice. The charge sheet should have adequate space for patient name and relevant information. The procedure codes would be listed in chronological order. Refer to CPT manual for all codes to be included.

• 3

  For each counselor, keep track of codes in an Excel spreadsheet with CPT codes corresponding to RVUs for ease of calculations for productivity. Reports should be generated at the end of each month and quarter to be given to the mental health counselors for individual records and personal tracking of productivity.