Anesthesia Billing & Coding Services

Anesthesia Billing & Coding Services

We have more than 18 years of expertise in this field, and we understand the complexities of anesthesia billing. Our anesthesia practice management consultants are knowledgeable, thorough, and detail-oriented to ensure your healthcare facility isn’t overpaying for anesthesia expenses.

There are different types of anesthesia providers, such as anesthesiologists, certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNA), and anesthesiologist assistants (AA). Each will bill separately for their professional services, just as surgeons and other physicians bill for their services rendered.

Anesthesia Billing

Components of Anesthesia Billing

Anesthesia billing can become complicated as it requires documentation of a high number of records, such as: Pre-operative Review. The pre-operative review consists of the patient’s and their family’s medical history, drug, or tobacco habits that have to be taken into account while calculating the required dosage of anesthetics.

It requires documenting several records, including:

  • Pre-operative review
  • Anesthesia sheet
  • Post-operative review

Anesthesia Sheet. The Anesthesia sheet involves the documentation of the following:

  • Base Units: The base units reflect the complexity and the skills required for the anesthetic service provided. The CMS publishes the base units once every year.
  • Time Units: This is the time spent with the patient administering the anesthetic or monitoring the patient’s condition before, after, or during the surgery. Time units are calculated by dividing the total minutes of service by 15
  • Modifiers: Anesthesia “provision/supervision” modifiers (-AA, -QK, -QY, -QZ, and -QX) explain the role of the anesthesiologist and CRNA. These modifiers are essential for clarifying whether an anesthesia procedure was personally performed, medically directed, or medically supervised by an anesthesiologist.
  • Formula: (Base Units + Time Units + Modifiers) x Conversion Factor = Anesthesia Reimbursement
  • Bundled services: Do not bill the following procedures along with anesthesia procedures.
    1. Do not bill for the Injection of diagnostic or therapeutic substances along with anesthesia procedures (62320 – 62321 and 62324 – 62325)
    2. Nerve Blocks (64400 – 64530)
    3. Transesophageal Echo (TEE) (93312 – 93318)
    4. Laryngoscopy (31505, 31515, 31527)
    5. Bronchoscopy (31622, 31645, 31646)
  • Post-operative Review: The post-operative review consists of records that state that the patient has not suffered any complications due to the anesthetic administered.