Cardiology Coding Alert

Note: Don't forget to include fluoroscopy

A "cheat sheet" kept within arm's reach can help you reduce - and possibly eliminate - denials for implantable therapeutic cardiac device procedures. These two handy charts, brought to you by David Davis, CPC, CPC-H, a reimbursement analyst at Guidant Corporation in St. Paul, Minn., list common codes you'll report for ICD and CRT-D scenarios.

Heads up: These codes aren't the solution in every situation, but they can steer you in the right direction.

Identify Probable ICD Implant Codes

Got implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) questions? Look no further. The following chart lists both single- and dual-chamber scenarios - just make sure you make the distinction.

Locate Likely Implant/Upgrade CRT-D Code

If your cardiologist performs cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillation (CRT-D), that means he's adding a third level (or electrode) to sense and pace the left ventricle.  But before you start reeling at the  coding possibilities, check out the chart to the right.

Note:  For more information on ICDs and CRT-Ds, see "Jump Start Your Cardiac Device Coding With This Chart" in the April 2005 Cardiology Coding Alert or e-mail me at suzannel@eliresearch .com for a PDF version.