A patient with a suspected cardiac arrhythmia was given a routine rhythm EKG with three leads in the cardiologist’s office. The results of the EKG were sent to the patient’s primary care physician, who interpreted the results and determined that the patient’s arrhythmia was mild. What is the correct code for the cardiologist’s office service only?
Explanation
Answer: C - The correct code for the cardiologist’s office is 93041 (Rhythm ECG, 1-3; Tracing Only Without Interpretation and Report).The interpretation of the ECG was performed by the patient’s primary care physician, therefore the cardiologist can only bill for the technical component of the ECG, which in this case is the tracing only. The primary care physician’s office, on the other hand, can only bill for the interpretation of the report, because the PCP only interpreted the test results and diagnosed the patient.
