Coding for bilateral x-ray of both knees

Q.

Is it appropriate to report modifiers RT and LT for CPT^® code 73565?  Both knees are imaged on the same film. 

A.

CPT code 73565 is inherently bilateral. You should not report it with either modifiers RT and LT, or modifier 50, or with units of two.

The code and full description is:

73565 Radiologic examination, knee; both knees, standing, anteroposterior

You also cannot report CPT code 73565 if you are reporting any of the other knee x-ray CPT codes (73560–76564). It is a stand-alone code.