Anesthesia Coding Alert

Question: Our CRNA provided anesthesia when a surgeon performed direct lateral interbody fusion with postero­lateral fusion. It was a one-level procedure with no instrumentation. What's the correct anesthesia code for her service?

Washington Subscriber

Answer: Because instrumentation is often used during the fusion process, you should make sure no instrumentation is involved. If the surgeon did not use instrumentation, the correct anesthesia code is 00630 (Anesthesia for procedures in lumbar region; not otherwise specified). If the surgeon had used instrumentation, you would choose 00670 (Anesthesia for extensive spine and spinal cord procedures [e.g., spinal instrumentation or vascular procedures]) instead.

Don't forget: Because you're submitting a claim for CRNA service, remember to include the appropriate performance modifier reflecting whether the service was medically directed by a physician. Your options include:

• QX -- CRNA service: with medical direction by a physician 
• QZ -- CRNA service: without medical direction by a physician.