General Question for the Week of December 12, 2022

Question:

Can a subcutaneous injection of insulin administered to a patient be billed?

Answer:

Subcutaneous injections of insulin may be administered to patients as sliding scale protocol or to correct blood sugar levels; however, per Medicare and most MACs, insulin is considered a self-administered drug, meaning that in most cases the administration of insulin is billed on a hospital claim with charges reported as non-covered. If reporting on a professional claim the injection is not billed. The drug may be billed, but with revenue code 637.