Spine 63075

[PLONDONM]

Good morning,
with the new changes as of 1.1.2011 when is it acceptable to bill 63075? Can you ever bill 22551 and 63075-59 on the same claim? Are there good websites to get information on spine coding?

:d

 

[JMeggett]

Good morning,
with the new changes as of 1.1.2011 when is it acceptable to bill 63075? Can you ever bill 22551 and 63075-59 on the same claim? Are there good websites to get information on spine coding?

:d

You can still use 63075 when an Anterior Cervical Discectomy is done. And you can still use 22554 when an interbody fusion is done. You just cannot use those 2 CPT's together when they're both done in same session. CPT created a new code that combines those 2 together - 22551 & 22552.
I go to www.aaos.com alot - American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Try the search box. I've actually based Appeal letters on information I've found on that website and have had denials overturned.
Jenna

 

[lodawnyoung]

I understand that you can not bill a 22554 with a 63075. But if the doctor does a complete discectomy with the fusion. The way I read it is that we can bill a 63075 with the 22551 as long as the documentation supports the complete discectomy and extra work. In fact the "coder" I took over for has been billing it this way incorrectly for two years now and many insurance companies have paid. So now I have a huge mess of corrected claims and takebacks that I am dealing with.

 

[Paston@southdenverspine.com]

63075

So, I'm confused...you CAN bill 63075 with codes 22551 and 22552 if the documentation supports? Our coder says to bill 63081(vertebral corpectomy) with 22551 instead. Which is correct? Does 22551 incorporate both the anterior cervical discectomy AND the interbody fusion, so only the 22551 is billed? I am new to spine coding and it is quite difficult, thank you to anybody who can help with this.

 

[mhstrauss]

So, I'm confused...you CAN bill 63075 with codes 22551 and 22552 if the documentation supports? Our coder says to bill 63081(vertebral corpectomy) with 22551 instead. Which is correct? Does 22551 incorporate both the anterior cervical discectomy AND the interbody fusion, so only the 22551 is billed? I am new to spine coding and it is quite difficult, thank you to anybody who can help with this.

It depends on what is documented. 22551 (commonly called an ACDF) incorporates the previous codes 22554 (interbody fusion) with 63075 (discectomy). 63081 is a corpectomy, which isn't typically done with an ACDF...but it is possible for it to be done at a different level. If just a discectomy is done at a different level on the same day as an ACDF, 63075 can be billed, with appropriate documentation and modifiers. Do you have a specific op report you need help with?

Does that help clear it up at all? Feel free to message me with further questions