Orthopedic Coding Alert
Two Surgeons, Distinct Services
Question: If one of our surgeons performs an open reduction with internal fixation (ORIF) on a fractured ulna and another one of our surgeons does the harvesting of the bone graft (but did not assist with the ORIF), should I append modifier -62?
Michigan Subscriber
Answer: The CPT description for modifier -62 (Two surgeons) states, "When two surgeons work together as primary surgeons performing distinct part(s) of a procedure, each surgeon should report his/her distinct operative work by adding modifier '-62' to the procedure code ... ."
In this case, each surgeon acted as the primary surgeon for a component of the total service, one surgeon performing the repair and the other surgeon harvesting the graft.
Because each surgeon performed a distinct part of the procedure, each will report 25405 (Repair of nonunion or malunion, radius OR ulna; with autograft [includes obtaining graft]) with modifier -62 appended.
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