Interventional pain management: evolving issues for 2003 (original) (raw)

The new millennium has seen the introduction of an array of new Current Procedural Terminology(R) (CPT) codes and the expansion of interventional techniques. Among the many issues of interest to physicians practicing interventional pain management in 2003 are CPT coding, correct coding issues, and utilization. The CPT developed and updated by the American Medical Association, is the most important and commonly used coding system for interventional pain physicians in the United States. A recent development in the CPT system has been to include Category I, Category II, and Category III CPT codes. Inclusion of a code in Category I is generally based on the procedure being consistent with contemporary medical practice and being performed by many physicians in clinical practice in multiple locations. In contrast, CPT Category III, also known as emerging technology codes, is a set of temporary codes for emerging technology, services, and procedures. There have been many new codes since 20...