As technology reshapes the way people think about the provision of healthcare, telehealth services are on the rise. In order to respond to this trend, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is adding several new codes to the CPT and the HCPCS code sets for calendar year 2018. If your practice provides telehealth services to patients, it is essential to be aware of the codes in order to ensure that there will be no unexpected glitches in claims processing come January. Read on to learn about the new telehealth codes that are being added for calendar year 2018.
Upcoming CPT and HCPCS Code Additions for 2018
In November 2017, the CMS released a report announcing that it was finalizing the addition of several new CPT and HCPCS codes to the growing list of Medicare telehealth services. The new CPT codes are:
1. CPT code 90785, which is for telehealth services addressing Interactive Complexity.
2. CPT codes 96160 and 96161, which are for Health Risk Assessments provided through telemedicine.
3. CPT codes 90839 and 90840, which are used to code for telehealth services for Psychotherapy for Crisis.
New HCPCS Codes are:
1. HCPCS code G0296, which is for telehealth visits that are used to determine a patient’s eligibility for low dose computed tomography (LDCT).
2. HCPCS code G0506, which is for telehealth visits related to Care Planning for Chronic Care Management.
In addition, the CMS reported that it is finalizing a separate payment process for CPT code 99091, which is used for certain types of remote patient monitoring. This new process will also go into effect in calendar year 2018.
The Possibility of Eliminating the GT Modifier
In the same report where the CMS released the newly finalized CPT and HCPCS codes for telehealth services, it also announced that it was finalizing a proposal to eliminate the existing requirement for healthcare professionals to use the GT modifier for telehealth services. Although this is only a proposal, it is certainly a policy that coding and billing staff will want to keep an eye on in the new year.
As 2017 draws to a close, it is important for medical coding and billing staff at physicians’ offices to be aware of the upcoming changes for January 2018. In order to avoid confusion, it can be helpful to get assistance from the experts at AnnexMed. Our coding and billing services can help your practice get off to a great start in 2018. Contact