Hospitals across the United States may use different terminology to describe the services or procedures they provide. But the insurance and medical industries apply universally accepted coding systems to ensure the standardization of definitions and charges. There are three types of codes that you may see on your insurance statements; you can use the first two types to search our Web site for the estimated prices of various procedures:
- CPT Code
CPT is an acronym for Current Procedural Terminology. CPT codes are 5-digit numeric codes, which are published by the American Medical Association. The purpose of the coding system is to provide uniform language that accurately describes medical, surgical, and diagnostic services (including radiology, anesthesiology, and evaluation/management services of physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare providers). There are about 7,800 CPT codes in use today.
- ICD-9 Code
ICD-9 is an acronym for International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision. This system is used to code signs, symptoms, injuries, diseases, and conditions.
Currently, you may search for pricing on our Web site by using either CPT or ICD-9 codes.
DRG Code
You may also see a DRG code on your statement, which stands for Diagnosis Related Group. DRG codes are used to classify inpatient hospital services and are commonly used by many insurance companies and Medicare. The DRG code, the length of the inpatient stay and the CPT code are combined to determine claim payment and reimbursement. You cannot search our site using DRG codes at this time.