tci General Surgery Coding Alert - 2006 Issue 3

Reader Questions: Stick With 'Open' Codes for Conversions

Question: If the surgeon performs a substantial portion of a cholecystectomy laparoscopically before converting to an open procedure, may I report both codes?Pennsylvania SubscriberAnswer: No, you may not report both procedure codes. You should claim 47600 (Cholecystectomy) only, for the open procedure.Medicare guidelines dictate that you may report only the open procedure, regardless of how much of the procedure the surgeon completed laparoscopically. Specifically, instructions in the introductory portion of the National Correct Coding Initiative state, -When an endoscopic service is attempted and fails and another surgical service is necessary, only the successful service is reported- [emphasis...

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