Radiology Coding Alert

Some of your prayers for more radiology codes could be answered soon The clock is ticking toward the release of new CPT Codes for 2005 - and we've got the inside scoop. Check out these possible new CPT codes and these confirmed Category III codes released by the American Medical Association, both effective Jan. 1. Prepare for (Provisional) Codes Experts predict four new codes beginning with the descriptor "Endovenous ablation therapy of incompetent vein, extremity, inclusive of all imaging guidance and monitoring, percutaneous ..." Code 36475 will cover radiofrequency for the first vein treated, and add-on CPT 36476 will cover subsequent veins in the same extremity treated through separate access sites. Similarly, code 36478 will cover laser treatment of the first vein, while add-on code 36479 will include subsequent veins in the same extremity treated through separate access sites.

The only code for this service now is an unlisted-procedure code, so the new codes will allow for more accuracy, says Dawn Hopkins, senior manager for reimbursement with the Society of Interventional Radiology.

You may be able to add vertebral fracture assessment to your list of DEXA codes with 76077 (Dual energy x-ray absorptiometry [DEXA], bone density study, one or more sites; vertebral fracture assessment).

If you work with ophthalmic ultrasound, check out 76510 (Ophthalmic ultrasound, diagnostic; B-scan and quantitative A-scan performed during the same patient encounter). B-scan ultrasound produces a two-dimensional map of the ocular and orbital tissues, while the quantitative A-scan reveals the distance between structures within the eye and orbit, says Maggie M. Mac, CMM, CPC, CMSCS, consulting manager for Pershing, Yoakley & Associates, Clearwater, Fla.

Don't miss these possible new PET tumor-imaging codes:

78811 - Tumor imaging, positron emission tomography (PET); limited area (e.g., chest, head/neck)

78812 - ... skull base to mid-thigh

78813 - ... whole body

78814 - Tumor imaging, positron emission tomography (PET) with concurrently acquired computed tomography (CT) for attenuation correction and anatomical localization; limited area (e.g., chest, head/neck)

78815 - ... skull base to mid-thigh

78816 - ... whole body.

Watch out: There's a good chance people will misinterpret these codes, says Denise Merlino, CNMT, MBA, FSNMTS, the coding and reimbursement adviser to the Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM) who staffs the SNM Coding and Reimbursement Committee.

Merlino emphasizes that if these new codes for PET with concurrently acquired CT are published, they should not be used when a radiologist performs both a PET and a separate CT. A concurrent CT refers to a study done on specific machines that allow you to do a PET with a concurrent CT for attenuation correction, meaning a more defined PET that produces better images. This technology costs more money, and that's why it needs its own code for reimbursement, she says, especially [...]