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Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

Reader Questions:

Tackle This Twin Amniocentesis Challenge

Published on Mon Jan 25, 2010

Question: I know we can report amniocentesis for twins several ways, based on CPT Assistant. I've heard the best way is to report the amnio twice if the ob-gyn needed to use two sticks; otherwise, we should simply append modifier 22. But should we report two units of 76946 when we report only one unit of 59000 for twins? Nebraska Subscriber Answer: You should report ultrasound guidance only once (76946, Ultrasonic guidance for amniocentesis, imaging supervision and interpretation), as your ob-gyn uses it throughout the entire procedure. Even if the ob-gyn did two amnios, you will still report the guidance only once. In some instances, twins can have two amniotic sacs. When that is the case, you may report 59000 (Amniocentesis; diagnostic) twice, one time for each sac. If the twins are identical (share the amniotic sac), then you can report 59000 only once. Warning: You should not add modifier [...]
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