January 5, 2017

Question:
My friend the spine surgeon asked for my help on an upcoming case. It is a two-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion where the patient requested a plastic surgeon to make the incision and do a cosmetic closure. I checked with his billing office and the codes for the case are 22551, +22552, +22845, and +20931. Am I a co-surgeon (modifier 62) on all the same codes because I’m doing the incision and closure?

Answer:
Actually, you should not bill anything to insurance. The incision and usual closure are included in the primary procedure code, 22551. If the patient wants a “cosmetic” result then this is cash from the patient and it should not be billed to insurance.

*This response is based on the best information available as of 01/05/17.