Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

Question: Codes 89280 and 89281 don't have a Correct Coding Initiative (CCI) edit, but payers are denying these codes as "mutually exclusive." Can we bill both codes and why?Rhode Island SubscriberAnswer: You should report 89280 (Assisted oocyte fertilization, microtechnique; less than or equal to 10 oocytes) or 89281 (... greater than 10 oocytes) based on the number of oocytes undergoing assisted fertilization under CPT guidelines, but not both. CCI would not have this edit because Medicare never covers infertility procedures. But you should not bill these codes together, because they are mutually exclusive under their CPT definitions.For example, your ob-gyn fertilized eight oocytes, so you should report 89280. If your ob-gyn fertilized 11 oocytes, you would report 89281 instead.