Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

Question: Does anyone bill 58661 with modifier 50 and get paid? Medicare used to consider this procedure as bilateral with payment indicator “0,” but in January 2010, they changed the payment indicator to “1.” CPT® describes 58661 as a bilateral procedure, and modifier 50 would not be appended. What should I do?

Oregon Subscriber

Answer: Medicare will pay 58661 (Laparoscopy, surgical; with removal of adnexal structures [partial or total oophorectomy and/or salpingectomy]) with modifier 50 (Bilateral procedure). Other payers may not since CPT® clarified that it was in fact a bilateral procedure at the same time that Medicare changed their minds.