Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

Question: I have a pregnant patient who underwent a vaginitis screen/wet prep, because she has had increased discharge. How would I bill this, so it wouldn't be included in the global? South CarolinaAnswer: You should bill 87210 (Smear, primary source with interpretation; wet mount for infectious agents [e.g., saline, India ink, KOH preps]) for the wet mount, but whether you can bill an E/M code (such as 99213, Office or other outpatient visit ...) for the evaluation that is separate from routine care is very much dependent on what your ob-gyn documented.  For instance, was this a patient complaint, or was it simply found on an examination? If found by the provider, you probably don't have a separate E/M, and you should bill 87210 only. If the ob-gyn documented that the discharge was incidental to pregnancy (or not complicating it), you can report a non-OB complication code if you have a separate significant [...]