Pathology and Laboratory: Drug Assay (Q&A) (July 2018)
July 2018 page 15d
Pathology and Laboratory: Drug Assay
Question: If a 12-panel urine drug–test strip testing for drugs of abuse is cut in half, can code 80305 be reported with two units?
Answer: No, the units of service for all the presumptive drug testing codes is "any number of drug classes, any number of devices or procedures." Therefore, one unit of code 80305, Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes, any number of devices or procedures; capable of being read by direct optical observation only (eg, utilizing immunoassay [eg, dipsticks, cups, cards, or cartridges]), includes sample...
Note: The following article synopsis was NOT provided by the AMA. It was created by Find-A-Code/innoviHealth.
Article Overview
This article reviews selected drug assay coding questions from CPT Assistant, focusing on presumptive drug testing and related laboratory considerations. It is intended for coding professionals and laboratory billing staff who need to understand the scope of the guidance and the types of services discussed. The article covers general reporting issues for drug testing devices and companion validation testing in the context of CPT guidance.
Why This Topic Matters
Drug assay reporting can be affected by how testing is performed and how companion validation services are handled. This article helps readers identify the coding topics addressed in the July 2018 guidance and determine whether the full content is relevant to their laboratory or billing workflow.
Article Sections
July 2018 page 15d
Introductory publication reference for the Q&A material and the drug assay topic area.
What You Will Learn
How the article frames presumptive drug testing guidance in a Q&A format
What general laboratory and point-of-care drug assay issues are discussed
How companion validation testing is addressed at a high level
Which coding topics from CPT Assistant are covered in the July 2018 entry
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