Ophthalmology and Optometry Coding Alert

Test your coding knowledge. Determine how you would code this situation before looking at the box below for the answer.


Question: When I epilate multiple lashes in a trichiasis patient, can I bill for each lash?

Anonymous Texas Subscriber


Answer: You cannot bill for each lash, but you can bill for each eyelid. You can bill 67820* (correction of trichiasis; epilation, by forceps only) or 67825* (correction of trichiasis; epilation by other than forceps [e.g., by electrosurgery, cryotherapy, laser surgery]) using the HCPCS eye modifiers to indicate on which lid the epilation was performed. If you remove multiple lashes from one lid, you cannot get paid for each lash.

The lid modifiers are -E1 for the upper left, -E2 for the lower left, -E3 for the upper right, and -E4 for the lower right. Therefore, if you did a forceps epilation on both upper lids, you would bill 67820-E1 on one line, and 67820-E3 on the other line.