How to Find CPT Codes When Given Procedures

Having the correct CPT code for a medical procedure can affect your medical bills and records as well as the practitioner's income. CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) codes are five-digit codes for medical services, and they are sent to insurance companies to get payment. These codes are used nationally and are updated and maintained by the American Medical Association. It can be challenging to find a CPT code for a procedure because they are copyrighted by the AMA, so any source that provides them needs to have a license to do so.

Things You'll Need

• Description of services
• Access to Internet

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Instructions

• 1

  Get a list of the services that you would like to look up. You can usually find this on paperwork you received from the doctor's office or hospital. If you can't find or don't have paperwork from the treatment, check the bill that was sent to you, probably by your insurance company or Medicare. Each service should have a CPT code next to it.

• 2

  Use the AMA's CPT search online (see Resources section) to check a CPT code for a procedure. Once you access the website, select the city and state you are in. Next, check off "Keyword(s) in descriptor." Enter any keywords you have, and then search. The less descriptive you are in the search, the more results you will get. The results will be a list of codes, along with their descriptions and medical payments. Look for the one that most closely matches the description of the procedure that you have.

• 3

  Call your doctor's office if you can't find the CPT code online. The office will be able to either provide you with a CPT code or point you in the right direction. If your services were performed by a hospital, call and ask for their billing or financial-services department. Finally, you can call your insurance company to ask for assistance. All of these health care institutions have staff members who are trained to use and understand CPT codes.