CPT Medical Billing Codes

CPT Medical Billing Codes and their relationship to ICD-9 or 10 codes are described here. Where to find good CPT medical coding references for medical coders and medical billing specialists. Links below to quickly look up diagnosis and treatment codes for free.

CPT is an abbreviation for Current Procedural Terminology that is developed and maintained by the American Medical Association (AMA).

The CPT edition is designated by the year so you want to use the most current edition available. These codes can only be obtained from the AMA or one of their licensees. They are not like the ICD 9 and ICD 10 diagnosis codes which are publicly available.

This 5 digit CPT codes describe medical services performed by a physician or healthcare provider. They are also used for surgical and diagnostic services. All the major commercial and government insurance carriers require the use of CPT codes when submitting claims. For example CPT-4 code 99243 is used for an initial office consultation and examination.

More information on Medical Billing Codes in general is available here.

For more comprehensive info on medical coding and billing related terms and abbreviations, checkout the Medical Billing Terms page.

Important For Reimbursement
CPT medical billing codes are assigned for every service that a provider performs on or for a patient. These are services such as the evaluation of a patients condition, surgical procedures, testing, or diagnostic services. CPT codes are used by health insurance companies to determine how much a provider is reimbursed based on the services or procedure performed. Depending on the providers agreement or contract with the insurance company, each provider may not be paid the same for the same procedure.

CPT codes correspond to an ICD-9-CM diagnostic code (soon to be ICD-10) which classifies a disease or condition. For an insurance claim to be paid by the insurer, the CPT medical billing codes must match the ICD 9 (or ICD 10) diagnostic code. For example, the ICD 9 code for high blood pressure cannot be assigned the CPT-4 treatment code for an unrelated treatment like an injection.

Where Can I Find CPT Medical Billing Codes?
The CPT medical billing codes are copyrighted by the AMA which prevents their free use and distribution without their permission and authorization.

However the AMA does allow a personal, non-commercial search of the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Codes on their website. The condition is that you that you can look up the codes ONLY for personal information and cannot sell the information.

If the AMA thinks you are using their free CPT search system too much, they can limit your searches and/or limit the number of CPT medical billing codes you look up at a time. You can look up these treatment codes from the AMA search link available on our CPT medical coding free references page.

One of the cheapest online coding references is from Find-A-Code. They offer access to the latest edition of CPT and ICD codes for only $4.95 a month.

Three Categories of Codes
CPT medical billing codes are part of the HCPCS coding system. HCPCS consists of three levels:

Level I – CPT Medical coding maintained by the American Medical Association.
Level II – Alphanumeric codes used primarily to identify products, supplies, and services that are not included in the CPT codes. These include durable medical equipment, ambulance services, prosthetics, and supplies that are used outside of a providers office.
Level III – Known as local codes. These were developed by state Medicaid agencies, Medicare contractors, and private insurers to use in certain programs. Level III codes were discontinued in 2003.

The AMA revises the CPT codes annually. CPT codes are sometimes accompanied by modifiers. These modifiers are two digit codes associated with a CPT code which indicate the procedure has been altered – or modified – or provide more specific treatment info. These modifiers are described in appendix A of the CPT publication.

CPT medical billing codes submitted on an insurance claim are associated with the diagnosis code to show the procedure is medically necessary. There may be more than one ICD code associated with each CPT code. The CMS 1500 form can accommodate up to four ICD codes in box 21 of the form as referenced by the diagnosis pointer in box 24E.

CPT Category I Code Organization

CPT codes are organized in sections as follows:

Evaluation and Management – 99201 through 99499
Anesthesia – 00100 through 01999; 99100-99150
Surgery – 10021 through 69990
Radiology – 70010 through 79999
Pathology and Laboratory – 80047 through 89398
Medicine – 90281 through 99199; 99500-99607

E/M Most Frequently Used
The Evaluation and Management codes, 99201 through 99499 are used by all specialties and facilities. These are listed first because they are the most commonly used. It’s important that these codes are accurately assigned because the majority of a practices income is based on these procedures.

Of these codes, the 99201 thru 99205 are for different variations of new patient office visits. 99211 thru 99215 the CPT codes are for established patients. The different codes for each situation depends on the complexity of the providers decision making. For example the 99201/99211 depend on history, examination, and complexity of decision making for either the new or established patient. The 99205/99215 would be for more involved or comprehensive history, examination, and complex decision making.

The majority of E/M CPT medical billing codes require the provider to obtain information from the patient to access the necessary medical care. As such the E/M services are not significant procedures, but are important in determining the other procedures the patient needs.

CPT Symbols

Here are the symbols commonly used in CPT reference coding books:

– Bullet to the left of the code denotes this is a new code that’s never been used before.

Free Billing Code Resources
Here are links to free references for CPT medical coding and ICD 9 codes from trustworthy websites. These can be very helpful if you’re just trying to do a quick search for a treatment or diagnosis code.

Medical Billing Terms
For more comprehensive listing of medical coding and billing terms and abbreviations, checkout the Medical Billing Terms page.

Coding References
There are several CPT coding handbooks available from the AMA bookstore or any authorized AMA publisher in an easy to navigate format that provide clarifications and make it easier to associate the code with the description.

If you’re looking for an online coding resource, there are several popular sites to choose from; Find-A-Code, Supercoder, CodingItRightOnline, and Coding Today are a few. The great thing about online coding references is they are continuously updated with the latest codes and you can access from any browser.

The popular CPT Expert book (available at Amazon or at AMA) combines codes with billing and Medicare regulatory information in one volume and clarifies annual code changes and rules. These references are also a great help in insuring the correct modifiers are used as this can be a big source of coding inaccuracies – and unpaid claims.

We occasionally find our clients using out of date CPT medical billing codes or using ICD codes that don’t match the treatment. Having good coding references is essential to resolving these issues.

Another excellent reference for medical billing specialists is Understanding Health Insurance. It’s an excellent source for describing CPT and ICD coding systems, managed care, legal and regulatory issues, reimbursement methodologies, coding for medical necessity, and common health insurance plans. It’s written in an easy to understand style for the complex issues in medical coding and billing and has several practical examples.

Medical Coding Software
This link discusses some of the options for Medical Coding Software and some of the major online resources available. Software references can be a real time saver in assigning the correct CPT medical billing codes.

***Note***
CPT Codes and their associated modifiers and descriptions are owned, copyrighted, and trademarked by the AMA (American Medical Association). They can be purchased directly from the AMA Bookstore or from one of the licensed sellers such as SuperCoder.com, FindaCode.com, Amazon, etc.

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