Pathology/Lab Coding Alert
Report Both Smear and Cell Block
New Mexico Subscriber
Answer: Yes, you can bill for both 88108 and 88305 from one original source if you perform both services. For example, a surgeon may perform a puncture aspiration of a breast lesion, and the lab may cytospin the aspirate to examine a concentrated smear, then process remaining aspirate in fixative to prepare and examine a cell block.
For these services, you should report 88108 (Cytopathology, concentration technique, smears and interpretation [e.g., Saccomanno technique]) and 88305 (Level IV - Surgical pathology, gross and microscopic examination, cell block, any source).
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