63047 denials that do not make sense.

[tswitzer]

My Medicare follow up person keeps getting rejected claims refusing to pay for 63047 as part of a spinal surgery. When she calls and speaks to someone, they tell her that the code is inherently bilateral and we are billing it incorrectly. We are not billing anything bilaterally; we have a charge listed for the surgeon and another one for the assistant. Quantity of one for both providers. Mind you all the surgery codes that allow for an assist are billed for both providers. Medicare told her that we need to append a 76 to this code, which is incorrect. We only seem to have this issue on part A claims. We are a critical access hospital and bill Method II, so professional fees for OP surgery bill out on the facility claim. The procedures billed for each of the providers were 22610, 22614 x5, 22843, 63047, and 63048. Has anyone else come across this. It really does not make sense to me that this specific CPT is the only one they are having an issue for. I told her I would be willing to call as well but just wanted to know if anyone else has seen this. The patient on this one only had the laminectomy at the two vertebrae billed but there were several fused as you can see.