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external fixator

R

richelle25

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141
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Clarksville, TN
How would you bill for an external fixator (20692) when the surgery to treat fx is scheduled for a few weeks after the external fixator has been applied. Can you charge only for the fixator and not a fx chg ?

Thank you
 
I see this happen quite frequently. I code for the external fixator placement as well as the fracture treatment performed after the ex-fix has been applied. Just be sure to add modifier 58 to the subsequent fracture treatment code(s).
 
This is a common scenario in trauma. If the documentation properly indicates closed treatment of the fracture with ex-fix, and provided there are no edits you "could" code both. You would have to check the documentation and the NCCI edits/code descriptions. As suggested above, when the definitive fracture treatment (ORIF, etc) is done and the ex-fix is removed, you append modifier 58 and code the ex-fix removal and the ORIF (or whatever is done).
 
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