Medicare increases cardiovascular surgery payment and ambulatory blood pressure equipment

    As of April 1,  Medicare will double its payment to $765.61 (par., national, non-facil.) for cardiovascular surgery procedure (code 36533, insertion of an implantable venous access device), under its first-quarter update to the 2002 physician fee schedule.  Medicare will also pay for monitoring ambulatory blood pressure  equipment used on certain patients.  Under a recently activated code, 93784, Medicare will pay physicians $43.08 for ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, including recording, scanning analysis, interpretation and report; $34.03 for only recording (coding 93786), and $9.05 for physician review with interpretation and report (93790).