For HCFA purposes, it depends on whether you are operating as an independent
lab or a hospital based/owned lab.  This rule applies mainly to whether or
not you can bill the pathologist's professional fee that the reference lab
charges.


Cheryl George, BS, HT (ASCP)
Histology/Cytology Supervisor
Elliot Hospital Laboratory
Manchester, NH
cgerorge@optima.org
603-663-2686


> ----------
> From: 	Weems, Joyce[SMTP:JWEEMS@sjha.org]
> Sent: 	Tuesday, December 05, 2000 7:48 AM
> To: 	'Hagerty, Marjorie A.'; 'Histonet'
> Subject: 	RE: billing query
> 
> We bill the same CPT codes that the reference lab bills.
> Joyce Weems
> Pathology Manager
> Saint Joseph's Hospital of Atlanta
> 
> 
> 	-----Original Message-----
> 	From:	Hagerty, Marjorie A. [SMTP:mhagerty@emc.org]
> 	Sent:	Monday, December 04, 2000 7:00 PM
> 	To:	'Histonet'
> 	Subject:	billing query
> 
> 	I am getting two conflicting opinions on a billing situation. If we
> send out
> 	a renal biopsy to another lab for electron microscopy, light
> microscopy, and
> 	immunofluorescence - do we bill our hospital patient for each test
> by CPT
> 	code for that test, or do we bill an 88323?
> 
> 	Thanks in advance for any info you can provide.
> 
> 	Marg
>