Excision epiphyseal bar — 333 bundling rules
If your bill lists 20150 alongside any of these codes as separate charges, it may be an unbundling error.
About the analyst
Kevin Nyk analyzes hospital pricing data at BillRazor Research. He specializes in Medicare reimbursement patterns and chargemaster pricing across U.S. hospitals. Expertise: hospital pricing, Medicare rates, chargemaster analysis.
Common unbundling errors — Surgery procedures
Unbundling occurs when hospitals bill component steps of a surgical procedure separately instead of using the appropriate comprehensive code that covers the entire operation. The NCCI database contains 1,142 surgery codes with bundling restrictions to prevent this practice. Common unbundling patterns include separately billing for surgical approach and closure when these are integral components of the main procedure, and charging for routine preparation steps like positioning or draping that are already included in the primary surgical code. Another frequent error involves billing separately for minor procedures performed during the same operative session that should be considered incidental to the major surgery. These billing practices result in charges above the benchmark for what should constitute a single surgical service. Patients may face potential differences in their financial responsibility when component procedures are unbundled rather than appropriately consolidated under comprehensive surgical codes. Understanding these bundling rules helps ensure accurate billing that reflects the actual scope of surgical services provided during a single operative encounter.
What to check on your bill
When reviewing surgery bills, patients should examine itemized charges for potential unbundling issues. Look for multiple procedure codes billed separately when they should be bundled together under standard billing practices. Watch for code patterns where a primary procedure appears alongside related minor procedures without appropriate modifiers - for example, seeing separate charges for incision, repair, and closure that typically comprise one surgical package. Check that modifier codes like -59 or -25 are present when separate procedures are legitimately billed, as these indicate the charges meet specific criteria for separate billing. Verify that pre-operative and post-operative care aren't billed separately from the main procedure unless clearly documented as distinct services. Compare your itemized statement against the original procedure authorization to identify any charges above the benchmark for your specific surgery type, noting potential differences between bundled and unbundled billing approaches.
All bundling rules for 20150
333 code pairs that have billing restrictions with this procedure.
| Code | Description | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| 0213T | Njx paravert w/us cer/thor | Never bill together |
| 0216T | Njx paravert w/us lumb/sac | Never bill together |
| 0587T | Perq impltj/rplcmt isdns ptn | May bill with modifier |
| 0588T | Revision/removal isdns ptn | May bill with modifier |
| 0596T | Temp fml iu vlv-pmp 1st insj | May bill with modifier |
| 0597T | Temp fml iu valve-pmp rplcmt | May bill with modifier |
| 0903T | Ecg alg 12 lead reduced i&r | May bill with modifier |
| 0904T | Ecg alg 12 ld rdcd trcg only | May bill with modifier |
| 0905T | Ecg alg 12 ld rdcd i&r only | May bill with modifier |
| 11000 | Dbrdmt ecz/infected skin<10% | May bill with modifier |
| 11001 | Dbrdmt ecz/infct skn ea addl | May bill with modifier |
| 11004 | Dbrdmt skin xtrnl gent&per | May bill with modifier |
| 11005 | Dbrdmt skin abdominal wall | May bill with modifier |
| 11006 | Dbrdmt skin xtrnl gent per | May bill with modifier |
| 11042 | Dbrdmt subq tis 1st 20sqcm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 11043 | Dbrdmt musc&/fsca 1st 20/< | May bill with modifier |
| 11044 | Dbrdmt bone 1st 20 sq cm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 11045 | Dbrdmt subq tiss each addl | May bill with modifier |
| 11046 | Dbrdmt musc&/fsca ea addl | May bill with modifier |
| 11047 | Dbrdmt bone each addl | May bill with modifier |
| 11900 | Inject skin lesions </w 7 | May bill with modifier |
| 11901 | Inject skin lesions >7 | May bill with modifier |
| 12001 | Rpr s/n/ax/gen/trnk 2.5cm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 12002 | Rpr s/n/ax/gen/trnk2.6-7.5cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12004 | Rpr s/n/ax/gen/trk7.6-12.5cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12005 | Rpr s/n/a/gen/trk12.6-20.0cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12006 | Rpr s/n/a/gen/trk20.1-30.0cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12007 | Rpr s/n/ax/gen/trnk >30.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12011 | Rpr f/e/e/n/l/m 2.5 cm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 12013 | Rpr f/e/e/n/l/m 2.6-5.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12014 | Rpr f/e/e/n/l/m 5.1-7.5 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12015 | Rpr f/e/e/n/l/m 7.6-12.5 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12016 | Rpr fe/e/en/l/m 12.6-20.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12017 | Rpr fe/e/en/l/m 20.1-30.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12018 | Rpr f/e/e/n/l/m >30.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12020 | Tx supfc wnd dehsn smpl clsr | May bill with modifier |
| 12021 | Tx supfc wnd dehsn w/packing | May bill with modifier |
| 12031 | Intmd rpr s/a/t/ext 2.5 cm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 12032 | Intmd rpr s/a/t/ext 2.6-7.5 | May bill with modifier |
| 12034 | Intmd rpr s/tr/ext 7.6-12.5 | May bill with modifier |
| 12035 | Intmd rpr s/a/t/ext 12.6-20 | May bill with modifier |
| 12036 | Intmd rpr s/a/t/ext 20.1-30 | May bill with modifier |
| 12037 | Intmd rpr s/tr/ext >30.0 cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12041 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit 2.5cm/< | May bill with modifier |
| 12042 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit2.6-7.5 | May bill with modifier |
| 12044 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit7.6-12.5 | May bill with modifier |
| 12045 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit12.6-20 | May bill with modifier |
| 12046 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit20.1-30 | May bill with modifier |
| 12047 | Intmd rpr n-hf/genit >30.0cm | May bill with modifier |
| 12051 | Intmd rpr face/mm 2.5 cm/< | May bill with modifier |
Showing 50 of 333 rules. Show all
FAQ — Surgery procedure bundling
What is NCCI bundling and what does 'bundled' mean on a medical bill?
How can I determine if surgical codes were incorrectly unbundled on my bill?
What should I do if I find unbundled charges on my medical bill?
When is it legitimate for hospitals to use modifiers to bypass bundling rules?
Data source: CMS National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) Procedure-to-Procedure (PTP) edits, updated quarterly. These code pairs are maintained by CMS to prevent improper billing of services that should be billed as a single procedure.
What this means: When two codes are listed as an NCCI edit pair, billing them separately on the same date of service is typically incorrect. "Never bill together" means no modifier can override the rule. "May bill with modifier" means the codes can be billed separately with appropriate documentation.