To align with standard international criteria established by the World Health Organization and adopted by the ICD-9-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, we are providing clarification on the appropriate reporting of Current Procedural Terminology (CPT®) codes that reference the perinatal period.
The ICD-9-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting states, “For coding and reporting purposes the perinatal period is defined as before birth through the 28th day following birth.” This means that the perinatal period continues through the 28th day of life, ending on the 29th calendar day after birth because the day of birth is considered day 0. Because the day of birth equals day 0, the day after birth is considered day 1.
This guideline affects the following CPT codes:
The following vignette will help illustrate the appropriate reporting of these codes:
A 600-g baby is born on July 1, 2011, at 9:00 am,...
