Arthroscopy, shoulder, surgical; distal claviculectomy

CPT 29824 is the billing code for "Arthroscopy, shoulder, surgical; distal claviculectomy". For surgical shoulder arthroscopy with distal claviculectomy

Medicare pays approximately $671.84 for CPT 29824 (national average). Actual payment varies by geographic location due to GPCI adjustments. Hospital and commercial insurance rates are typically 2-4x higher than Medicare rates.

CPT 29824 has a total RVU of 27.70, broken down as: Work RVU 12.00, Practice Expense RVU 14.50, and Malpractice RVU 1.20. RVUs (Relative Value Units) determine Medicare reimbursement rates.

Key documentation requirements for CPT 29824 include: Indication for distal claviculectomy; Amount of clavicle resected; Resection technique; AC joint findings. Missing or incomplete documentation is a leading cause of claim denials for this code.

Bundling considerations for CPT 29824: Includes surgical arthroscopy. Includes distal claviculectomy Use an NCCI bundling checker to verify specific code combinations before billing.

Common modifiers for CPT 29824 include: 50 (Bilateral procedure when both shoulders performed same session), 51 (Multiple procedures performed same session), 22 (Increased procedural services for extensive resection). Modifiers indicate special circumstances and can affect reimbursement or prevent claim denials.

The typical time requirement for CPT 29824 is 50-80 minutes typical operative time. Time-based codes require documentation of the actual time spent providing the service.