Pathology/Lab Coding Alert

Question: When our lab performs the blood draw as well as the lab test, such as CBC, can we separately code the draw or do payers include it in the lab test? If separate, which code should we use? Georgia SubscriberAnswer: You may separately report the blood draw service for a lab test, in most cases. Some payers consider the service bundled with the costs associated with the lab test, however, so you'll need to follow payer rules. Which code you use depends on the type of blood draw and who's doing it.The most common code for a phlebotomist blood draw would be 36415 (Collection of venous blood by venipuncture).You might also report 36416 (Collection of capillary blood specimen [e.g., finger, heel, or ear stick]). Beware -- Medicare won't pay for a capillary blood collection.Most payers allow for one collection fee for each patient encounter, regardless of the number of specimens [...]