November 2010 page 9
Surgery: Nervous System
Question: If a single injection is performed for a thoracic intercostal nerve block, the effect of which is to block multiple intercostal nerves, it is appropriate to report CPT code 64421, Injection, anesthetic agent; intercostal nerves, multiple, regional block, or is the provider limited to re-porting code 64420, Injection, anesthetic agent; intercostal nerve, single?
Answer: From a CPT coding perspective, “single injection” means “single nerve block.” Therefore, code 64420 should be reported. If only one needle is placed into the skin but manipulated up and down to inject into...
Note: The following article synopsis was NOT provided by the AMA. It was created by Find-A-Code/innoviHealth.
Article Overview
This short Q&A article addresses a nervous system surgery coding question from CPT Assistant and focuses on thoracic intercostal nerve block reporting. It is relevant to coders and billers who work with anesthesia-related nerve block services and want to understand the article’s discussion of CPT reporting considerations for a single injection scenario.
Why This Topic Matters
Nerve block reporting can affect code selection in surgical and pain-management billing workflows. This article clarifies the coding discussion surrounding a thoracic intercostal block scenario and is useful for professionals reviewing CPT guidance from the November 2010 CPT Assistant issue.
What You Will Learn
How the article frames a thoracic intercostal nerve block coding question
What general CPT reporting issue the Q&A addresses
How the article distinguishes the service scenario at a high level
What type of coding guidance is discussed in the November 2010 CPT Assistant issue
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