Outpatient Facility Coding Alert

Reader Question:

Don't Report Oxygen Administration As A Separate Entitiy

Question: A patient was administered oxygen per nasal cannula for a severe migraine for 30 minutes. The patient showed no improvement in the symptoms. How do I code and bill for this procedure?


Idaho Subscriber

Answer: CPT® does not contain separate oxygen administration codes; it bundles the oxygen into the E/M service you report for the day. You should report the appropriate office visit code that describes the service the pulmonologist performs and documents.

Example: A pulmonologist performs a detailed history, detailed examination and moderate-complexity medical decision-making before administering oxygen to a patient who is having an anaphylactic reaction to an allergy injection. You should assign 99214 (Office or other outpatient visit for the evaluation and management of an established patient …), as well as any separately billable procedures and special services.

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