May 2007 page 9
Coding Communication:Anesthesia
Question
Should the time spent placing nerve
blocks for postoperative pain control, spinals,
arterial lines, etc, be deducted from main anesthesia
start and stop times? Would the time
spent placing these items need to be deducted
from the anesthesia time for the operation? Is
there a difference between the arterial line, etc,
being placed prior to the patient "going to
sleep" or after in regards to discounting this
"placement" time?
AMA Comment
The Anesthesia guidelines in the CPT
codebook indicate that placement of monitoring
devices such as central venous lines, arterial
lines, and...
Note: The following article synopsis was NOT provided by the AMA. It was created by Find-A-Code/innoviHealth.
Article Overview
This CPT Assistant article for anesthesia professionals discusses how to think about reporting time when certain procedures are performed around the anesthesia encounter. It focuses on broad guidance for separately reportable monitoring devices and regional pain-control procedures, and it is relevant to anesthesia coders, billers, and compliance staff reviewing anesthesia time reporting.
Why This Topic Matters
Correct anesthesia time reporting affects compliant coding and charge capture. The article helps readers understand the general scope of anesthesia-related services that are treated separately from the main anesthesia service.
Article Sections
Coding Communication: Anesthesia
A coding Q&A on anesthesia service timing and the relationship between the main anesthetic and other separately performed procedures. The section presents CPT-based guidance from AMA commentary.
What You Will Learn
How the article frames anesthesia time reporting questions
What general categories of procedures are discussed in relation to anesthesia services
How CPT anesthesia guidance is presented in an AMA coding communication format
Which types of anesthesia-related services are treated as separate from the main anesthesia service
Who Should Read This
Anesthesia coders
Medical billers
Compliance staff
Anesthesiologists
Certified professional coders
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