Kim Pollock, RN, MBA, CPC, CMDP

It would be great if the 40 minutes spent meticulously removing previously placed posterior rods and screws in preparation for extension of the instrumentation could be reported and reimbursed using the Current Procedural Terminology or CPT codes for instrumentation removal, but unfortunately that is not always the case. According to the CPT guidelines for use of the spinal instrumentation, as well as the reinsertion and/or removal codes, which are summarized in Table 1, there are limited scenarios in which these codes can be reported.

Here are a few questions about spine surgery coding that recently came to the attention of KarenZupko & Associates Inc., along with our answers. We hope this information is useful.

In this Spine Coding Source column, Kim Pollock, RN, MBA, CPC, CMDP, and Teri Romano, RN, MBA, CPC, CMDP, explain some of the common questions and concerns with ICD-10-CM implementation. This implementation will require a steep learning curve and careful attention to coding and reimbursement.

All HIPAA-covered entities, such as physicians, facilities and health insurers, are required to use ICD-10-CM codes for services performed on Oct. 1, 2015 or later. You have only weeks to make sure you are ready.

In this edition of Spine Surgery Today, Teri Romano, RN, MBA, CPC, and Kim Pollock, RN, MBA, CPC, provide readers with more coding tips to answer the billing challenges in spine practices.

Correct coding of a corpectomy requires knowledge of several factors, including the diagnosis, amount of the vertebral body removed, the region of the spine on which the procedure was performed and the approach. A corpectomy, which is removal of all or part of a vertebral body, is typically performed to decompress the spinal cord which has been compromised due to disease (eg, stenosis, myelopathy, fracture or tumor).

This article will focus on answers to questions related to the most common coding conundrums that spine surgeons face. Accurate coding, especially in spine, is sometimes a challenging and frustrating process. Codes change, as do coding and reimbursement guidelines.

As part of the new Spine Coding Source column, Spine Surgery Today will begin discussing relevant spine coding issues for surgeons. We hope this new feature will enhance your practice and help clarify areas of difficulty. We are pleased to work with coding experts, KarenZupko & Associates. Our goal is to provide our readers with up-to-date coding changes and practice optimization tools. We look forward to your comments and suggestions for future topics.

Associate Editor, Neurosurgery

New devices for spine fixation and instrumentation seem to appear every day. Integrating these new devices into your surgical practice is considerably easier than deciding how to code and get paid for this new technology.