Orthopedic Coding Alert

Check out where 20939 will fit in CPT^® 2018.

In a perfect world, everyone would get a new CPT^® book every year, with all the new additions, deletions, and revisions tucked squarely into the latest manual.

Problem: For various reasons, some orthopedic coders won't have access to a CPT^® 2018 manual, and won't have the luxury of flipping to the proper page and seeing 20939 in print. Often, these coders will use old manuals and annotate and update them in order to stay current in their CPT^® coding.

Don't worry, though. if you cannot procure a CPT^® 2018 manual, go to the Grafts (Or Implants) section of your CPT^® book and add 20939 to the following code set:

• +20930, Allograft, morselized, or placement of osteopromotive material, for spine surgery only (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)  
• +20931, Allograft, structural, for spine surgery only (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)
• +20936, Autograft for spine surgery only (includes harvesting the graft); local (eg, ribs, spinous process, or laminar fragments) obtained from same incision (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)
• +20937, ... morselized (through separate skin or fascial incision) (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)
• +20938, ... structural, bicortical or tricortical (through separate skin or fascial incision) (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)
• 20939, Bone marrow aspiration for bone grafting, spine surgery only, through separate skin or fascial incision (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)

Remember: You should try to get your hands on a new CPT^® book if at all possible. Nothing will ever take the place of a new edition with all of the additions, deletions, and revisions included in the typed text.