Bluegrass Vascular’s Surfacer System Gains CMS Billing Code and New Technology APC

September 20, 2021—Bluegrass Vascular Technologies announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized a new Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code and New Technology Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) assignment for use of the company’s Surfacer Inside-Out access catheter system procedure.

The new code is C9780 for insertion of a central venous catheter through central venous occlusion via inferior and superior approaches (eg, inside-out technique), including imaging guidance. It is assigned to New Technology APC 1534, with a national average payment rate of $8,250.50.

Hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers can use HCPCS code C9780 to report the inside-out procedure when performed with the Surfacer system beginning on October 1, 2021.

According to Bluegrass Vascular, the Surfacer Inside-Out system is FDA-cleared to facilitate upper-body central venous access in patients with venous obstructions or other conditions that preclude access by conventional methods. The use of the Surfacer device also avoids left-side catheter placement, better enabling the maturation of permanent arteriovenous access options in the left arm and minimizing unnecessary access-related procedures and complications.

The Surfacer system received FDA de novo clearance in the US in February 2020. Additionally, it has received CE Mark approval in Europe. The device is available in North America, Europe, and other territories. Merit Medical Systems, Inc. is the distributor of the Surfacer Inside-Out device in North America and Europe.

The National Kidney Foundation’s current Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative Clinical Practice Guidelines for Vascular Access, which were announced in March 2020, recommend that the ideal access site for hemodialysis catheters is the right internal jugular vein, which is supported by the Surfacer system’s “Don't Go Left” approach, noted the company.