Wiki How to bill anesthesia?

[enjoycoding]

POS was office setting. Practice specialty is Physical Med & Rehab. Recently began performing percutaneous vertebral augmentation (cpt 22523) with radiological supervision and interpretation.....under fluoroscopic guidance (cpt 72291). A certified nurse anesthestist was contracted to administer, as per the notes, local monitored anesthesia.

Procedures billed to Medicare were 22523, 72291, 99144. The 99144 code denied. What code should I use to bill the anesthesia.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Vannoyj]

How to bill for anesthesia

I'm not sure what state your in to bill for Medicare, but Texas has local coverage determinations for these primary procedure you billed.
You stated it was local monitored anesthesia. You billed 99144. I would have billed 99149, because the CRNA is not performing the diagnositc/ therapeutic procedure. The CRNA provided the monitoring for the physician who performed the procedures.

hope this helps.

 

[Michele Hannon]

CRNA's bill out anesthesia codes for MAC anesthesia.
01935 for a diagnostic procedure or 01936 for a therapeutic procedure.