Anesthesia Coding Alert
Yes, You Can Code for Anesthesia During ESIs—Sometimes
Question: What anesthesia code do you bill when anesthesia is performed for transforaminal epidural steroid injections? The code details state that anesthesia is not typically required, but I know it crossed to 01935 and 01936 in years past. California Subscriber Answer: You are correct that epidural steroid injections do not typically need anesthesia, so the procedures are not assigned an automatic crosswalk code. However, there are times when circumstances merit anesthesia during these injections and you are allowed to bill accordingly. For anesthesia administered during diagnostic injections, report 01935 (Anesthesia for percutaneous image guided procedures on the spine and spinal cord; diagnostic). When coding anesthesia during therapeutic injections, submit 01936 (… therapeutic). Both codes are assigned a base unit value of five.
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