Billing and Coding: Application of Bioengineered Skin Substitutes to Lower Extremity Chronic Non-Healing Wounds

Bioengineered skin substitute grafts (CPT 15271-15278) are covered for lower-extremity chronic non-healing wounds when conservative dressings and treatments are insufficient to achieve complete healing, and when the application service is reported using the appropriate CPT application code. Skin substitute graft codes apply to non-autologous/allograft/xenograft and biological sheet products but must not be used for non-graft wound dressings or injected substitutes (these are bundled and not separately payable); discarded single-use product amounts must be billed with modifier JW and thoroughly documented in the medical record.

"Application of bioengineered skin substitute grafts is covered for lower-extremity chronic non-healing wounds when dressings and conservative treatments appear insufficient to achieve complete heal..."

Sign up to see full coverage criteria, indications, and limitations.