Question:
For our outpatients, we procure blood and blood products from a community blood bank that charges us only the processing and storage costs it has incurred. How do we bill for this?
Answer:
Providers that are reimbursed by the outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) bill the processing and storage charges using one of the following revenue codes: 0390 (blood processing/storage), 0392 (blood processing/storage; processing and storage), or 0399 (blood processing /storage; other processing and storage), along with the appropriate blood HCPCS code, the number of units transfused, and the line item date of service (LIDOS).
For more details on billing, see the Medicare Claims Processing Manual, Chapter 4, section 231 at https://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Guidance/Manuals/Downloads/clm104c04.pdf.
This question was answered in the 2018 edition of our Coding Essentials for Laboratories. For more hot topics relating to laboratory services, please view our store, or call us at 1.800.252.1578 ext. 2.