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Pulmonology Coding Alert

Sail Through Multiple Endoscopy Coding Hurdles with this Surefire Advice

Published on Wed Jan 28, 2009

These modifier tips tell you how to ratchet up reimbursement. With frigid temperatures expected to hold steady through a bleak winter, respiratory complaints are sure to be on the rise in your office. Now is the ideal time to review Medicare's Multiple-Endoscopy Payment Rule when coding for bronchoscopies to ensure speedy processing. Disentangle Fees for Multiple Bronchoscopies What you need to know: When your pulmonologist performs multiple bronchoscopies, Medicare reimburses 100 percent for the highest-valued procedure. Then, you get paid for each remaining procedure at the allowable rate minus the base rate for a diagnostic bronchoscopy: 31622 (Bronchoscopy, rigid or flexible, with or without fluoroscopic guidance; diagnostic, with or without cell washing [separate procedure]). Payers deduct the base rate from each bronchoscopy code reported after the first because the base bronchoscopy value is included in the payment for the highest-valued procedure. And since the base payment is "built in" to [...]
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