postop exam

[ppt]

When patient's primary treating physician referred patient to an ortho surgeon who also in the same medical group for surgery. My question is can the PTP bill for his exam during patient's postop period?

Thanks for any tips.

[FTessaBartels]

The global period applies ONLY to the surgeon who performed the surgery (and other physicians of the same specialty and same practice).

HOWEVER, if the PTP is performing the post-operative care, then the surgeon should have appended the -54 modifier to the surgical CPT, and your physician should be using the exact same surgical CPT with the -55 modifier.

Hope that helps.

F Tessa Bartels, CPC, CEMC