4 Tactics Protect Your Cerumen Removal Pay
Published on Mon Oct 12, 2009
These tips tell you when to use 69210. You can rest assured that claims for 69210 (Removal impacted cerumen [separate procedure], one or both ears) will hold up on chart audit provided you check off these items. 1. Check If Wax Meets Impaction Criteria You can only report 69210 with a diagnosis of impacted cerumen (380.4). Removing wax that is not impacted does not justify 69210. Instead, capture this work with an E/M code (99201-99215, Office or Other Outpatient Services) -- no matter how the provider removes the wax. To determine if documentation supports 384.0, use the definition from the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAOHNS), which is also published in CPT Assistant July 2005. Consider cerumen clinically "impacted" if any one or more of the following are present: • Visual considerations: Cerumen impairs exam of clinically significant portions of the external auditory canal, tympanic membrane, or middle [...]
