New vs Existing Patient Exam

[Guest guest]

Here is the situation. I have a patient I saw for a lower extremity condition which I treated in September, 2009 and did not see her again until today. She returns with a cervical injury from a fall and hit her head on the pavement. I did an examination and realize since it is within three years since I last saw her that I must use 99213 examination instead of a 99203. Is this correct? I had to do a full comprehensive examination which took considerable time not to mention consultation and getting all the facts straight before beginning treatment. You can see I am not going to be fairly compensated for my time if I have to use the 99213 examination code with managed care write off involved in this case. --Dr. Layman