# Anesthesia and dental billing



## kbriscoe (Nov 22, 2010)

We provide anesthesia for pediatric dental cases. We are wondering how other groups handle this kind of billing. A lot of our patients have dental insurance and medical insurance. It is not primary/secondary, just 2 kinds of coverage. We are wondering if we can bill both insurance companies the same charge? Or is that considered double billing? 

How do other offices handle this when a patient has 2 kinds of insurance? Any suggestions?


----------



## dwaldman (Nov 22, 2010)

You would bill the patient's medical/health insurance. Dental insurance companies can only process dental codes and dental insurance is only for the dentist to bill his portion. If you call a dental insurance company and ask them if they process CPT codes, they will say no.


----------



## kbriscoe (Dec 2, 2010)

We would bill dental codes to the dental insurance, and ASA codes to the medical insurance. Our qestion is can we do this king of "shotgun" billing?


----------



## dwaldman (Dec 2, 2010)

00170 with total minutes w/ appropriate modifiers for the professional portion for the anesthesiologist and/or CRNA. Typically primary Dx is 521.00 unspecified dental carries and then secondaries conditions that desribe the medical necesscity of performing the procedure under general anesthesia such as the patient has mentally retardartion, has autusim,  or history of other combative/disorders of conduct during previous dental encounter in dental offices.

If you are also billing for the hospital. The facility is billing Unlisted CPT 41899 under 360 revenue code. They are also billing for drugs, supplies, and recovery room under revenue codes. This is considered a medical claim and is billed to the health insurance. 

The dentist would bill his portion with the dental codes (non CPT codes) to the patient dental insurance. Even if the commercial carrier request your facility to use a D code to represent the facility fee portion instead of 41899 which would be a rare instance, you would still bill the patient medical/health insurance plan with that single code for facility fee not the dental plan.


----------



## gennie1978 (Mar 22, 2018)

*Anesthesia and Dental Billing*

Can a medical anesthesiologist bill dental cdt anesthesia codes for GA or can they only bill the 00170 to the medical insurance?


----------



## dwaldman (Mar 24, 2018)

D9223 [deep sedation/general anesthesia — each 15 minute increment]

Here above is the CDT code, but if the insurance carrier is ok with 00170 I would stick with that.


----------

