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Anesthesia billing with time, base units and modifiers right
Billing for anesthesiologists, CRNAs and anesthesia groups: base units, time units, physical status modifiers and more.
How anesthesia billing works
Anesthesia payment is calculated from base units for the procedure, plus time units (usually 15 minutes each), sometimes plus modifying units, multiplied by the payer’s conversion factor. Accurate start and stop times are essential.
Modifiers show who performed the service and under what direction: AA, QK, QX, QY and QZ.
Codes we bill every day
| Code | What it covers |
|---|---|
| 00100–01999 | Anesthesia codes by body area |
| AA | Anesthesiologist personally performed |
| QK | Medical direction of 2–4 concurrent cases |
| QX / QZ | CRNA with or without medical direction |
| QY | Medical direction of one CRNA |
| P1–P6 | Physical status modifiers |
Code descriptions are summarized. Payer coverage and documentation rules vary by plan and state.
Denials we prevent
- Missing or overlapping anesthesia times
- Wrong medical direction modifier
- Concurrency ratio exceeded
- Anesthesia for procedures not covered
- Missing physical status modifier for payers that pay on it
Questions about anesthesia billing
Do you bill CRNA groups?
Yes, including medically directed and non-medically directed CRNA services.
Get a free anesthesia billing audit
Send a few details and we will set up a short call to review your claims, denials and A/R. No cost and no commitment.
We sign a Business Associate Agreement before we handle any patient data.