Cardiology Coding Alert

Remember: You won’t be able to report 99441 next year.

With January 1 comes a variety of CPT^® 2025-related headaches you’ll have to deal with, including numerous telemedicine additions, as well as some new Category III cardiology-related codes.

Take the following quiz to test your CPT^® 2025 knowledge so you can face all of these additions, revisions, and deletions with complete confidence.

Learn About New Category III External Electrocardiograph Codes

Question 1: Will we see any new Category III codes for external electrocardiographs in 2025?

Answer 1: Yes. Next year, you can report several new external electrocardiographic codes, including 0937T (External electrocardiographic recording for greater than 15 days up to 30 days by continuous rhythm recording and storage; including recording, scanning analysis with report, review and interpretation by a physician or other qualified health care professional) through 0940T (… review and interpretation by a physician or other qualified health care professional).

Don’t miss: “As the public health emergency [PHE] ends and healthcare innovations and technologies expand, the new 2025 codes allow providers to more clearly describe the services they are performing,” says Kristen Taylor, CPC, CHC, CHIAP, CRCR, associate partner at Pinnacle Enterprise Risk Consulting Services LLC in Bowman, South Carolina. “While some of the familiar codes are being deleted, new category I and III codes have been added to give the providers more detailed and specified services to report.”

Understand Cardiac Contractility Modulation for Clarity

Question 2: What is cardiac contractility modulation (CCM)?

Answer 2: CCM is a heart failure treatment that uses a device to help your heart pump blood. This therapy gives your heart the boost it needs to function better and alleviate heart failure symptoms like breathlessness, fatigue, confusion, and swelling in the legs.

Report CCM Insertion This Way

Question 3: How should we report CCM insertion next year?

Answer 3: For CCM insertion, you will gain 0915T (Insertion of permanent cardiac contractility modulation-defibrillation system component(s), including fluoroscopic guidance, and evaluation and programming of sensing and therapeutic parameters; pulse generator and dual transvenous electrodes/leads (pacing and defibrillation)) through 0918T (… dual transvenous leads (pacing and defibrillation) only).

Delve Into New Audio/Video E/M Options

Question 4: What are the new synchronous audio/video evaluation and management (E/M) codes that CPT^® will add in 2025?

Answer 4: The new codes include eight new synchronous audio/video E/M codes: 98000-98003 (Synchronous audio-video visit for the evaluation and management of a new patient …) for new patients and 98004-98007 (Synchronous audio-video visit for the evaluation and management of an established patient …) for established patients.

Note: These codes are audio/video.

Don’t miss: You will determine the appropriate service level for the codes in the same way you do for the office/outpatient E/M service codes 99202-99215 (Office or other outpatient visit for the evaluation and management of a new/established patient …); either by determining the level of medical decision making (MDM) as straightforward, low, moderate, or high per the CPT^® E/M guidelines, or by calculating the total physician time for the service on the date of the encounter. Both the MDM level and total service times for 98000-98007 parallel the levels for 99202-99215.

Say Goodbye to Deleted Codes

Question 5: Which telephone E/M codes will be deleted in 2025?

Answer 5: CPT^® will delete the old telephone E/M codes 99441-99443 (Telephone evaluation and management service by a physician or other qualified health care professional who may report evaluation and management services provided to an established patient …) in 2025.

See New Audio-Only Codes

Question 6: Will we see any new synchronous audio-only E/M codes next year?

Answer 6: Yes. CPT^® has added eight new synchronous audio-only E/M codes for next year. For new patients, you will choose from 98008-98011 (Synchronous audio-only visit for the evaluation and management of a new patient …), while you’ll use 98012-98015 (Synchronous audio-only visit for the evaluation and management of an established patient …) for established patient audio-only E/M services.

MDM levels for these codes are also the same as the office/outpatient and synchronous audio/video E/M codes — straightforward, low, moderate, or high — as are the levels of physician time spent.

Note: These codes are audio-only.

Focus on 98016

Question 7: How would we report synchronous audio-only E/Ms lasting for 5-10 minutes in 2025?

Answer 7: For synchronous audio-only E/Ms lasting for 5-10 minutes, report new code 98016 (Brief communication technology-based service (eg, virtual check-in) by a physician or other qualified health care professional who can report evaluation and management services, provided to an established patient … 5-10 minutes of medical discussion) — if appropriate. This means, per the code’s descriptor, the service must not have originated “from a related evaluation and management service provided within the previous 7 days,” nor led “to an evaluation and management service or procedure within the next 24 hours or soonest available appointment.” The code’s descriptor also stipulates that the code can only be used for established patients.

Meagan Williford, BA, MA, CPC, Contributing Writer