Home Health ICD-9/ICD-10 Alert

Reader Questions:

Cover Chest Tube With Aftercare

Question: Our patient was hospitalized for a spontaneous pneumothorax and had a chest tube placed. We are providing therapy and nursing including respiratory assessment now that he has returned home. How should we code for him?

-- Vermont Subscriber

Answer: Report V58.74 (Aftercare following surgery of the respiratory system, NEC). There is no specific code for care of a chest tube, but it is included in the aftercare code.

You can place the code for spontaneous pneumothorax, 512.8 (Other spontaneous pnemothorax) in M0240 if the condition is not resolved. It is not a case mix diagnosis but still may be placed in M0246 for risk adjustment.

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