CMS stopped recognizing consult codes in 2010. Outpatient consultations (99242—99245) and inpatient consultations (99252—99255) are still active CPT^® codes, and depending on where you are in the country, are recognized by a payer two, or many payers.

• In 2023, codes 99241 and 99251 were deleted. These two low level consult codes were rarely used. There are four levels of office/outpatient consults and hospital consults. These correspond to the four levels of medical decision making.
• CPT® has removed the coding tip–and all language–regarding transfer of care.
• CMS is not planning on changing its policy on consultations.

The advantages to using the consult codes are twofold: they are not defined as new or established and so may be used for patients the clinician has seen before, if the requirements for a consult are met.”

In this article about consultation codes update:

• Category of code for payers that don’t recognize consult codes
• Workflow
• Definition of a consultation–updated with 2023 CPT guidance
• 2023 documentation changes