tci ED Coding & Reimbursement Alert - 2010 Issue 8

Common ED Debridements: Ride These 3 FAQs to Debridement Coding Success

Multiple lesions, multiple codes? Maybe. When your ED physician performs debridements, be sure to note whether the service was partial- or full-thickness, or you'll overcode the encounter. Follow this FAQ to submit spot-on debridement claims each time. 1. What Is a Partial Thickness Debridement? The most common ED presentation for debridement involves partial-thickness debridement, which you'd code with 11040 (Debridement; skin, partial thickness). "A partial-thickness debridement includes the epidermis and part of the dermis, but some dermal cells are left," explains Marcella Bucknam, CPC, CCS-P, CPC-H, CCS, CPCP, COBGC, CCC, manager of compliance education for the University of...

To read the full article, sign in and subscribe to tci ED Coding & Reimbursement Alert.

Thank you for choosing Find-A-Code, please Sign In to remove ads.