Podiatry Coding & Billing Alert

Question: A patient who presented with Morton's neuroma underwent a destruction of plantar digital nerve procedure. How should I bill the claim if the podiatrist used ultrasonic guidance for the destruction?Florida SubscriberAnswer: If your podiatrist used ultrasonic guidance for either the nerve block (64455, Injection[s], anesthetic agent and/or steroid, plantar common digital nerve[s] [e.g., Morton's neuroma]) or destruction (64632, Destruction by neurolytic agent; plantar common digital nerve), you should add 76942 (Ultrasonic guidance for needle placement [e.g., biopsy, aspiration, injection, localization device], imaging supervision and interpretation) to your claim.Don't forget to append modifier 26 (Professional component) if the physician performed the procedure in a facility. You should report 76942 only once per region, regardless of how many injections your physician administers. Important: To avoid any headaches when reporting 76942, make sure your physician includes documentation stating that he used fluoroscopic guidance for the procedure, detailing the procedure itself, as well as [...]