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General Surgery Coding Alert

CPT® 2013:

32420-32422 Are Out -- Prep 4 New Thoracentesis and Drainage Codes

Published on Thu Nov 15, 2012

Clear up old aspiration questions with new codes.If your general surgeons provide chest tube services, you've got some changes coming your way that you won't want to miss. Get familiar with deleted and added codes to make sure you code your chest cases properly once CPT® updates become effective on Jan. 1, 2013.Look at Lung Additions, Deletions, and Revisions, TooCoding for removal of fluid from the chest cavity will look a little different in the New Year.Deleted: Expect CPT® 2013 to delete these codes:32420 -- Pneumocentesis, puncture of lung for aspiration 32421 -- Thoracentesis, puncture of pleural cavity for aspiration, initial or subsequent 32422 -- Thoracentesis with insertion of tube, includes water seal (e.g., for pneumothorax), when performed (separate procedure).Added: In their place, you can expect to see four new codes:32554 -- Thoracentesis, needle or catheter, aspiration of the pleural space; without imaging guidance 32555 -- ...with imaging guidance 32556 -- Pleural drainage, percutaneous, with [...]
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