Reader Question:
01996 Is a Fee-for-Service Code
Published on Thu May 01, 2003
Question: Is 01996 a fee-for-service code or does it have a unit value? Utah Subscriber Answer: Code 01996 (Daily hospital management of epidural or subarachnoid continuous drug administration) is a fee-for-service code. The American Society of Anesthesiologists Relative Value Guide assigns 3 units to 01996. Multiply the three units by your local anesthesia conversion factor (the national anesthesia conversion factor is $17.05) and add it to the applicable time units to determine the charge amount.
Remember that the new notes in CPT 2003 state that you should report 01996 for management of an epidural or subarachnoid after the physician uses that catheter for surgical anesthesia delivery. Use the appropriate E/M code instead of 01996 if you're billing for epidural or subarachnoid delivery that is separate from surgery.
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