Podcast: CPT Coding-When Meeting With Parents of an Adolescent Patient

When working with adolescents, family involvement is crucial to achieving good outcomes. Knowing which Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes to use is vital to the billing and reimbursement process, and frequently it’s a matter of concern for clinicians. There are times when meeting with parents is necessary, so it’s important to code the sessions appropriately and to keep track of these codes in the patient’s chart.

Which CPT billing codes should you use when working with adolescents if there's a need for a clinician to meet with parents separately?

Here to discuss is Dr Saundra Jain, a psychotherapist in private practice and presenter at the US Psychiatric Congress. Dr Jain provides workshops to health care practitioners and organizations interested in learning more about the topic of differential diagnosis of major psychiatric disorders and the power of wellness. She is the Executive Director of the Mental Aerobics Project (MAP), which focuses on wellness and the impact of positive psychology on client outcomes.

Teaching points
•There are typically 3 billing codes when working with an adolescent as it pertains to today’s question:

      90806: Individual Session
      90847: Family Psychotherapy with patient present
      90846: Family Psychotherapy without patient present

•Even though these CPT codes are standard, not all payors will cover the charges. It is always advisable to check with the payor regarding which codes they will cover.
•Many insurance companies won't reimburse for a family conference if the patient is not present.