General Surgery CPT Codes
General surgery billing is the global surgical package applied at scale: the payment for an operation includes the decision-adjacent visit, the procedure, and 90 days of routine follow-up. The specialty's recent curveball is the hernia code overhaul, which replaced the old familiar codes with a new family priced by defect size. Laparoscopic versus open matters for code choice, and conversions have their own rule.
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General Surgery CPT codes
Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
Gallbladder removal, laparoscopic. With cholangiography it's 47563.
Laparoscopic Appendectomy
Appendix removal, laparoscopic. The standard appendicitis operation.
Inguinal Hernia Repair, Initial, Age 5+
Open initial inguinal hernia repair. Laparoscopic inguinal repairs use 49650.
Excision of Breast Lesion
Excision of benign or malignant breast mass without wire localization.
Incision & Drainage of Abscess, Simple
Simple I&D of a single abscess. Complicated or multiple is 10061.
Debridement, Subcutaneous Tissue, First 20 sq cm
Wound debridement coded by depth and area. Deeper layers use higher codes.
Codes in blue have full detail pages with documentation requirements, billing mistakes, and FAQ.
General Surgery billing notes
Major procedures carry a 90-day global package: routine post-op visits inside it are already paid. The E&M that led to the surgery decision bills with modifier 57 when it happens the day of or before a major procedure.
A laparoscopic case converted to open bills only the open code. Never both, and no extra payment for the laparoscopic attempt.
Ventral and incisional hernia repairs moved to a new code family (49591–49622) priced by defect size and whether the case was initial or recurrent. Measure and document the defect, because the size sets the payment.
Assistant surgeons bill the same code with modifier 80 (or 82 in teaching settings), and payment follows Medicare's assistant-surgery indicator: some procedures allow it, many don't.
Debridement codes (11042 series) go by depth and surface area. Documenting depth to subcutaneous tissue versus muscle versus bone changes the code and the payment.
Frequently asked questions about general surgery billing
What's included in the 90-day global package?▼
The operation, the same-day pre-op evaluation, and all routine post-operative care for 90 days: rounding, wound checks, suture removal, normal follow-up visits. Not included: the initial decision-for-surgery E&M (modifier 57), unrelated problems (modifier 24), and returns to the OR (modifier 78).
How do I bill a laparoscopic case that converted to open?▼
Bill the open procedure code only. The laparoscopic attempt is considered the surgical approach, not a separate service, so there's no code and no extra payment for it. Document the conversion and its reason in the op note.
What changed with hernia repair coding?▼
Ventral, incisional, and related anterior abdominal hernia repairs moved to the 49591–49622 family, which prices by defect size, initial versus recurrent status, and whether the repair was reducible or incarcerated/strangulated. The op note now needs a measured defect size, because that measurement selects the code.
Sources
- Code set structure and updates: American Medical Association — CPT
- Fee schedule and component billing rules: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
- How we research and verify: our editorial policy
CPT® is a registered trademark of the American Medical Association. Content on this page is original educational writing, not a reproduction of AMA-copyrighted descriptions. Verify codes and payer rules before billing.