General Surgery Coding Alert
Reader Question:
Unlisted-Procedure Code Describes Vein Excision
Published on Tue Apr 27, 2004
Question: Which code is appropriate to report excision of an infected vein? Answer: CPT does not contain a specific code to describe excision of an infected vein. Therefore, your best code choice is 37799 (Unlisted procedure, vascular surgery). You'll want to send a full operative report describing the procedure and explaining medical necessity.
California Subscriber
Note: For complete information on reporting unlisted- procedure codes, see "3 Field-Tested Tips Improve Your 'Unlisted-Procedure' Claims" in the April 2004 General Surgery Coding Alert.
If your payer refuses to accept an unlisted-procedure code, be sure to ask the payer for instructions in writing on how best to handle the claim.
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