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General Surgery Coding Alert

Identifying Base Codes Doesn't Have to Be Tedious

Published on Wed May 27, 2009

Use this handy chart to quickly find the codes you need. Knowing how to apply the multiple endoscopy rule is only half the battle when you-re reporting your general surgeon's scope procedures. You also need to know which codes to apply the rule to. Good news: There's a fast and easy way to determine if a code is a base code: Consult the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS), says Jill Young, CPC, CEDC, CIMC, of Young Medical Consulting in East Lansing, Mich. You can download the PFS for free from the CMS Web site at www.cms.hhs.gov/PhysicianFeeSched. Be sure to download the "PFS relative value files" version. Then select "2009" to download the fee schedule. How it works: To identify an endoscopic base code, look to column AD (labeled "Endo Base") of the Excel spreadsheet you download. Column AD shows you the endoscopic base code for the code that appears [...]
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