Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) Laboratory Testing (August 2020)

August 2020 Special Edition Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) Laboratory Testing There is precedence for the American Medical Association (AMA) Current Procedural Terminology (CPT ®) Editorial Panel immediately releasing CPT codes when an emergent issue arises. Due to the coronarvirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, this mechanism was used in the spring of 2020 to approve, revise, and release several CPT Category I codes. In addition, new proprietary laboratory analyses (PLA) codes were approved in May 2020 and June 2020. The following table outlines the changes that were published on the AMA’s website, and effective immediately following final approval by...

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Note:  The following article synopsis was NOT provided by the AMA. It was created by Find-A-Code/innoviHealth.

Article Overview

This August 2020 special edition summarizes COVID-19-related laboratory testing updates from the CPT Editorial Panel and AMA CPT resources. It is designed for coders, laboratory professionals, and compliance teams who need to understand the scope of newly approved CPT Category I and PLA laboratory test reporting for SARS-CoV-2, along with related appendix and publication context. The article also presents explanatory material and clinical examples to help readers distinguish among the lab testing categories discussed in the update.

Why This Topic Matters

COVID-19 laboratory testing guidance changed rapidly in 2020, and this article documents the coding updates published during that period. It helps readers identify which laboratory testing topics were addressed in the August 2020 CPT Assistant special edition and whether the article is relevant to SARS-CoV-2 assay reporting and related code-set changes.

Article Sections

  1. August 2020 Special Edition

    Introduces the special edition context and frames the article as a laboratory coding update related to SARS-CoV-2 testing.

  2. COVID-19-Related CPT Category I Code Approvals through June 2020

    Summarizes previously approved CPT Category I laboratory testing updates and related effective dates, with brief notes on the affected testing categories.

  3. COVID-19-Related CPT PLA Code Approvals through June 2020

    Covers newly approved proprietary laboratory analyses associated with COVID-19 testing and the publication context for those updates.

  4. Immunology

    Describes newly established immunology-related SARS-CoV-2 testing codes and the broader testing context for neutralizing antibody assessment.

  5. Proprietary Laboratory Analyses

    Presents additional PLA code updates, related proprietary names, and the general laboratory testing scenarios associated with them.

  6. Clinical examples and procedural descriptions

    Provides representative laboratory testing scenarios and procedural overviews tied to the newly discussed codes.

  7. Question and Answer

    Addresses a comparison question among selected SARS-CoV-2 antibody-related testing codes and clarifies the article’s distinctions at a high level.

What You Will Learn

  • How the article organizes SARS-CoV-2 laboratory testing updates by code set and publication timing
  • What types of laboratory testing topics are covered in the August 2020 update
  • How the article frames newly approved immunology and proprietary laboratory analysis content
  • What kinds of clinical examples and explanatory material are included
  • Which organizations and publication sources are referenced in the update

Who Should Read This

  • Medical coders
  • Laboratory billing staff
  • Compliance professionals
  • Pathology and laboratory medicine teams
  • Revenue cycle professionals

Codes Discussed

Code Ranges Discussed


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