Wound Vac Billing

Question:

I’m a general surgeon.  Some of my team are reporting the negative pressure wound therapy codes 97605 and 97606 when applying wound vacs after closing at the completion of their surgical cases.  As a result, I am told by my coders that billing for these wound vacs is not appropriate, since there is a Medicare NCCI edit that bundles this with more comprehensive procedures at the same anatomic area.

The physicians and coders disagree about how to handle these edits.  Some of the physicians believe the wound vacs are billable because they are applied to the skin which constitutes a different body system.  The coders think the wound vacs are dressings which are included in the global surgical fee and would not billable.  After multiple discussions with the physicians and coders, we are unable to provide a definitive answer.   Could I please ask you for your advice regarding this issue? What is the right answer?

Answer:

There are two layers to the issue; CPT rules and payor editing rules.

First, from a CPT perspective, the “wound vac” codes in the range of 97605-97608 are only reportable when placed at an open wound site.  For example, if a physician performed debridement of an open wound, did not close the wound, but placed a wound vac at the debridement site to promote healing, a code in the range 97605-97608 could be reportable if appropriately documented.   Additionally, in the case of delayed closure of the abdomen in damage control surgery, the placement of a wound vac over this open abdomen may be separately reported if documented correctly.

Codes 97605 and 97606 are used for placement of a non-disposable wound vac device, while codes 97607 and 97608 are used if the wound vac is disposable.    The codes are further differentiated by the wound size, either greater than 50 sq cm, or less than or equal to 50 sq cm.

If the wound site has been surgically closed, and a wound vac is placed over the closed wound site, then the use of the wound vac is not separately reportable, as it is being used as a dressing.

In the case of a “codeable” wound vac, payor rules that apply when other services are performed at the same time should also be considered.  For example, debridement code 11044 does not have an NCCI edit with code 97605, thus you should not have any issues reporting the two codes together.  Similarly, you should not find NCCI edits between the lower extremity decompressive fasciotomy codes and the wound vac codes – another type of procedure where it is not unusual to have delayed surgical closure of the wound site.

Damage control surgery, fasciotomy coding and use of wound vacs will be thoroughly covered in the ACS Successful Surgical Coding and Trauma and Intensive Care coding courses offered in several locations in 2021.

*This response is based on the best information available as of 02/06/20.