Forum - Questions & Answers
critical care and cardiac cath
Hi,
I have a doctor that has charged critical care on the same day as a cardiac cath and/or intervention. He documents the cath findings within the critical care note and heads the note as 'Critical Care/ Intervention' (there is a separate cath note). It is my understanding that if the critical care is provided during a cath or intervention, then you should only code the cath/intervention but you can code them separately if the patient is critically ill (99291) then taken to the cath lab for a PCI (92980) but these services would have to be separately documented.
Is this correct?
Thanks.
You are right
Unless the patient had a cardiac arrest in the cath lab and required resuscitation that was unrelated to the cath (like if he coded when moved from the gurney to the table) but if it was a complex cath it is included. A cardiac cath requires "constant bedside presence" so you cant bill separately for this.