NCCI Update for Intercostal Nerve Blocks

Effective January 1, 2020, CPT® code 64421 became an add on code to be reported in conjunction with code 64420:

Codes in 2019 

64420 Injection, anesthetic agent; intercostal nerve, single

64421 Injection, anesthetic agent; intercostal nerves, multiple, regional block

Codes in 2020

64420 Injection(s), anesthetic agent(s) and/or steroid; intercostal nerve, single level

64421 Injection(s), anesthetic agent(s) and/or steroid; intercostal nerve, each additional level (List separately in addition to code for primary procedure)

The version of the National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) as updated and released for implementation on January 1, 2020 included an edit pairing code 64421 with 64420 that did not reflect the revised coding structure,  The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) promptly reported this matter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)  NCCI  Contractor and is pleased to report that per the most recent version of NCCI that was just released, the edit has been deleted with a deletion date of December 31, 2019.  

If you received any denials for claims for 64421 for services provided since January 1, 2020 that were due to that NCCI, edit, you should resubmit them for re-processing and payment.