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Manikandan

Manikandan is a Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) specialist with over 10 years of hands-on experience in US healthcare billing. He has worked extensively with commercial payers, Medicare, and Medicaid across multiple specialties including surgery, orthopedics, and radiology. Manikandan founded Medical Billing 101 to provide free, accurate denial code guides, CPT coding references, and Medicare billing resources for US medical billing professionals.

What Are CPT Codes? Categories, Structure and How They’re Updated

October 3, 2026 by Manikandan
CPT codes explained: 5 characters, 4 types, 1 code set. Five code character boxes beside a code book

CPT codes are five-character codes from the American Medical Association’s Current Procedural Terminology code set, meaning a standard shorthand that providers put on claims to report the services and procedures they performed. On a claim, the diagnosis code says why the patient was seen. The CPT code says what was done. This guide covers who … Read more

Categories Medical codes 2 Comments

What Is Medical Billing? A Plain-English Guide to the Claim Cycle

October 3, 2026 by Manikandan
Medical billing basics: 8 steps from visit to payment. A numbered cycle around a dollar sign

Medical billing is the process of turning a patient visit into a paid claim, meaning the provider’s services and diagnoses are coded, sent to the insurer in a standard format, tracked, and matched against what the insurer pays. Medical billing looks like one task, but it is a chain of steps. A mistake early on, … Read more

Categories Rcm guides 2 Comments

CPT 87798 Denied for 13 Units: Why It Happens and How to Fix It

October 3, 2026August 13, 2026 by Manikandan
Why 13 Units Scream Unbundling: CPT 87798 denial graphic with test tubes, unit blocks and rejected bundle

CPT 87798 is being denied for 13 units because payers have moved this code into active enforcement in 2026, and 13 units billed on a single date of service trips every automated edit that enforcement triggers.

Categories Rcm guides Tags CPT 87798 Denied

CPT 90839 and 90840 Denied by Medicaid: What It Means and How to Fix It

October 3, 2026August 13, 2026 by Manikandan
Valid Codes, Still Denied by Medicaid: CPT 90839 and 90840 crisis therapy claim graphic with denial badge

When Connecticut Medicaid denies CPT 90839 and 90840 with the reason “coverage/program guidelines were not met”, it is not saying the crisis session did not happen.

Categories Medical codes Tags CPT 90839 and 90840 2 Comments

CPT 15771 and 15772 Denial: How to Fix “Primary Service Code Was Not Submitted”

October 3, 2026August 13, 2026 by Manikandan
Missing One Code Kills the Other: CPT 15771 and 15772 add-on denial graphic with missing primary code

If you are billing CPT 15771 and 15772 and receiving the denial message “The primary service code was not submitted therefore the secondary code is not allowed”, you are not alone. It is one of the most common fat grafting add-on code denials.

Categories Insurance guidelines Tags CPT 15771 and 15772 5 Comments

CPT Code for Juvederm Breast Injections (11950-11954): What Billers Need to Know

October 3, 2026June 28, 2026 by Manikandan
Don't Split the Bilateral Volume: CPT 11950-11954 Juvederm filler graphic with two syringes and a beaker

A coder posted this question in a billing community forum: what CPT code is everyone using for injections of Juvederm Ultra XC to bilateral breasts?

Categories Insurance guidelines Tags Cpt 11950, Cpt 11954, juvederm breast injection 2 Comments

CO-96 Denial Code: What Non-Covered Charges Mean in Cosmetic Billing

October 3, 2026June 28, 2026 by Manikandan
Don't Bill the Patient Yet: CO-96 cosmetic billing graphic with signed waiver form and stop sign

CO-96 is one of the denial codes that shows up across every specialty, every payer, and every billing department regardless of how experienced the team is.

Categories Denial codes Tags Co 96 denial code 2 Comments

ICD-10 Z41.1 Encounter for Cosmetic Surgery: When to Use It and When Not To

October 3, 2026June 28, 2026 by Manikandan
Cosmetic or Medical? Code It Right: ICD-10 Z41.1 cosmetic surgery graphic with mirror and medical cross

Z41.1 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for Encounter for Cosmetic Surgery. It is a Z code, which means it represents a reason for an encounter rather than a disease or injury.

Categories Medical codes Tags Z41.1 icd10 3 Comments

GY Modifier on Medicare Claims: Cosmetic Procedures Billing Guide

October 3, 2026June 28, 2026 by Manikandan
Medicare Will Never Pay for This: GY modifier cosmetic billing graphic with padlock and denied claim

Medicare billers working in cosmetic, aesthetic, and plastic surgery practices encounter the GY modifier regularly. It is one of the most specific and unambiguous modifiers in the Medicare billing system, and using it correctly protects the practice, clarifies patient financial…

Categories Medical codes Tags gy modifier 3 Comments

CO 97 Denial Code: What It Means and How to Work It (2026 Guide)

October 3, 2026June 20, 2026 by Manikandan
One Missing Modifier Is Costing You: CO 97 denial code graphic with a bundled claim marked denied

Claim denials don’t just slow down your revenue. They erase it. In 2025, Experian Health’s 3rd Annual State of Claims Survey found that 41% of healthcare providers had at least 1 in 10 claims denied, marking the third consecutive year…

Categories Denial codes 6 Comments
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Recent Posts

  • What Are CPT Codes? Categories, Structure and How They’re Updated
  • What Is Medical Billing? A Plain-English Guide to the Claim Cycle
  • CPT 87798 Denied for 13 Units: Why It Happens and How to Fix It
  • CPT 90839 and 90840 Denied by Medicaid: What It Means and How to Fix It
  • CPT 15771 and 15772 Denial: How to Fix “Primary Service Code Was Not Submitted”

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