CPT codes are also known as "Current Procedural Terminology" and is a system created, updated and maintained by the CPT Editorial Panel as a method to easily communicate among many different physicians. The CPT code system is useful for communicating service data in a manner that is uniform among medical care providers around the world. In function, CPT codes are similar to ICD codes but are used
. specifically to communicate data regarding services, while ICD codes are used for the communication of diagnostics and procedures. CPT codes are five digit alphanumeric codes, conveniently categorized into three categories and a number of groups for medication, radiology, pathology and lab work, surgery, anesthesia, evaluation and case management. These codes are almost exclusively numeric, while Category II codes, which are used for performance measurement, and Category III codes, used for emerging technology, use both alphabetical and numeric characters. CPT codes are updated quarterly and are a trademark of the American Medical Association, while the system used for determining and listing these codes is an AMA copyright. Due to this trademark and copyright there are no reliable websites that offer a database of current CPT codes free of charge, but a number of websites offering paid services exist. CPT codes are evaluated and released anew each October; therefore, it is recommended to choose a paid service directly linked to the American Medical Association, or to use the paid service offered directly from the American Medical Association itself. It is necessary for most people using the CPT code system to pay a license fee to the AMA. Though the fees for accessing the AMA database of CPT codes are expensive, it is recommended to pay this fee and use this system, rather than to use any free databases of CPT codes found online, since these online databases are not frequently updated and contain erroneous information. More Reference Links: https://commerce.ama-assn.org/store/catalog/product.jsp?id=prod280002&WT.mc_id=ocm2-rbrvs-20111122&WT.mc_ev=click http://www.supercoder.com/coding-tools-signup/
