Primary Care Coding Alert
If Physician Makes No Incision, Opt for E/M
Question: A patient presents to the FP with shards of glass from a shattered light bulb in his chest. The physician removes the shards and sends the patient home. Should I consider the procedure a foreign-body removal (FBR)? Nevada Subscriber Answer: Maybe -- you-ll have to get more information from the physician before coding this scenario. Even though the physician did remove FBs, it might not be considered an FBR for coding purposes. If the physician had to make a separate incision during the FB extractions, the procedure is an FBR and you should code it with one of the following: - 10120 (Incision and removal of foreign body, subcutaneous tissues; simple) for simple FBRs of the skin - 10121 (- complicated) for complicated FBRs of the skin. However, if the physician removed the shards without any extra incisions, consider the work part of the overall E/M service and code accordingly. -- Answers to You Be the Coder and Reader Questions reviewed by Kent J. Moore, manager of Health Care Financing and Delivery Systems for the American Academy of Family Physicians in Leawood, Kan.
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If Physician Makes No Incision, Opt for E/M
Question: A patient presents to the FP with shards of glass from a shattered light [...]
