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Anesthesia Coding Alert

Reader Question:

Add Modifier -59 for Lumbar Drain

Published on Mon Nov 22, 2004

Question: How should I report a lumbar drain that the physician placed in addition to administering anesthesia and placing a Swan-Ganz catheter?

Oklahoma Subscriber
 
Answer: Code the lumbar drain placement as 62272 (Spinal puncture, therapeutic, for drainage of cerebrospinal fluid [by needle or catheter]). Append modifier -59 (Distinct procedural service) to indicate that the lumbar drain is in addition to the other services. You can always bill a Swan-Ganz catheter as a separate surgical procedure, so also report 93503 (Insertion and placement of flow directed catheter [e.g., Swan-Ganz] for monitoring purposes).

--You Be the Coder and Reader Questions were answered by Barbara Johnson, CPC, MPC, owner of Real Code Inc., in Moreno Valley, Calif.
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