Pre Surgery H&P

[MariWard]

If we see a patient more than 30 days before their surgery date, the facilities are requiring us to preform a current H&P at the hospital on surgery day prior to the procedure. Is this billable? Thanks in advance!

 

[lweygandt]

Coding Specialist

The CPT® Assistant in May of 2009 answered this question specifically. Here is a quote from their newsletter:

If the surgeon sees a patient and makes a decision for surgery and then the patient returns for a visit where the intent of the visit is the preoperative H&P, and this service occurs in the interval between the decision-making visit and the day of surgery, regardless of when the visit occurs (1 day, 3 days, or 2 weeks), the visit is not separately billable as it is included in the surgical package.

 

[koatsj]

We have patients that do not have a current H & P for surgery sometimes. We schedule them with our nurse practitioner in the office and she updates their H & P, but it is not billable.

 

[MariWard]

Thanks so much for your help!