October 14, 2021 Question: I’m a general surgeon. Some of my team are reporting the negative pressure wound therapy codes 97605 and 97606 when applying wound vacs after closing at the completion of their surgical cases. As a result, I am told by my coders that billing for these wound vacs is not appropriate, since...
September 30, 2021 Question: In the past, when I did a total thyroidectomy and I needed to re-implant a parathyroid gland I would also code 60512. I am now being told by my coders that I cannot code 60512 if I implant a parathyroid gland in the sternocleidomastoid muscle. They say I can only charge...
September 16, 2021 Question: If a code does not specify whether the procedure described is laparoscopic or open, is it acceptable to use it if the procedure was performed laparoscopically? Answer: No. Laparoscopic codes will always have the term “laparoscopic” in the code description. If there is no laparoscopic code for a procedure you performed...
September 2, 2021 Question: How do I report placement of a mesh implant in the abdomen that is not a biological implant and not for an open incisional hernia? Answer: Placement of a non-biological implant in the abdomen is reported with code +0437T Implantation of non-biologic or synthetic implant (eg, polypropylene) for fascial reinforcement of...
August 19, 2021 Question: I’ve been dictating CPT and ICD-10-CM codes in my procedure note so that my coder knows what to bill. Recently, we had an insurance company call us out because the codes we billed were not the same as the codes in the procedure note. Now I am not sure what to...
August 5, 2021 Question: Can you give guidance on CPT 15860 as it pertains to colorectal surgery? My surgeons have been using this code when they use the isocyanine green fluorescence imaging either with the robot (Firefly) or open (SpyPhi). They are saying this code is relevant because they are assessing vascular flow in a...
July 22, 2021 Question: What happened to the skin biopsy codes? I submitted a claim for 11101 (skin biopsy) and +11101 (additional lesion) and it was denied for “invalid code.” Answer: CPT deleted CPT codes 11100 and +11101, effective 1/1/19, and replaced them with the follow six new codes: 11102 Tangential biopsy of skin (eg,...
July 8, 2021 Question: We are hiring a scribe for the doctor because it will help improve his documentation. Is there anything we need to know about how to document this? Answer: Yes, absolutely. This situation should be clearly delineated so a third party reviewer can identify the provider who performed the service, and the...
June 24, 2021 Question: Our physicians utilize residents during surgery but we have a discrepancy in what is considered a “Qualified Resident”. Some physicians consider a resident qualified to assist day 1 of their residency rotation, while others consider only 4th and 5th year residents as qualified to assist. Can you guide us to documentation...
June 10, 2021 Question: Can you code a PTH (blood draw), during a parathyroidectomy? Answer: Monitoring the Parathyroid hormone (PTH), including the blood draw, is included in the parathyroidectomy and not separately reported. *This response is based on the best information available as of 6/10/21.
