# Stimulator electrode removal coding help



## HBROCKMAN (Dec 6, 2010)

Can you bill for the professional part in the removal of the spinal stimulator electrode?  It does fall into the global timeframe, and I haven't been billing for it, but lately my doctors have been questioning why I am not.  I have read some of the other threads, and I know that at an ASC you can bill them, but I am not sure about in an office setting.  I have requested the dictation from the physician when this is what the patient is seen for, and all they do is apply pressure and remove the electrode.  It hardly sounds invasive at all.  I have been entering this visit as a post op visit and not charging anything.  If anyone can help me on this it would be greatly appreciated!


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## dwaldman (Dec 6, 2010)

In the AMA CPT Professional Edition, under Neurstimulators (Spinal), it states: "Do not report 63661 or 63663 when removing or replacing a temporary percutaneously placed array for an external generator."

Since you are mentioining post op period, I assume you are referring to the trial or temporary placement of array with contact electrodes for spinal cord stimulation attached to external pulse generator. According to CPT manual, 63661 for example is reserved for when the patient has removal of a  permanent placed array/lead and fo example due to pain, malfunction, migration, desire to have it removed, or the need for additional imaging such as MRI for conditions requiring further treatment. 

You should not bill 63661 for the removal of temporary leads, but in ASC you can bill for the removal of a permanent placed lead removal.


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## HBROCKMAN (Dec 7, 2010)

Thats exactly what we found out...turns out the physician was stirring this up again, or how we like to put it "revisiting it" again, for his other billing office.  We do his ASC billing and he was trying to make sure his physician billing office was coding correctly.  I had originally thought it was a physican we do do the physician billing for, so I was running around thinking I had missed some update...nice!  

Thank you for your time!!


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