Florida Subscriber
Answer: If the physician previously confirmed the pregnancy by any method (such as a pregnancy test or prior ultrasound), you would probably report one of the following pregnant ultrasound codes, depending on the documented approach:
It is key that a physician previously diagnosed the patient as pregnant if the patient determined pregnancy through a home test, the pregnancy has not been "diagnosed," and the visit would therefore not qualify as a pregnant uterus ultrasound.
The answers for You Be the Coder and Reader Questions were reviewed by Cindy C. Parman, CPC, CPC-H, RCC, co-owner of Coding Strategies Inc. in Dallas, Ga; and Gary S. Dorfman, MD, FACR, FSIR, representative to the AMA's CPT Advisory Committee.