Medicare Coverage & Payment

CMS short descriptor: Drug test presump not opt
Medicare coverage: Carrier judgment (CMS coverage code C)
Pricing indicator: 21
BETOS: T1H — Lab tests - other (Non-Medicare fee schedule)
Last CMS action effective: January 1, 2017
Terminated: December 31, 2016

Source: CMS HCPCS Level II release. Coverage codes indicate how Medicare treats the code, not whether a specific claim will be paid; payer policy and documentation still govern.

Code Set: Removed from the code set — not valid on or after January 1, 2017.

Contextual Map

Every relationship of G0479 in one view: hierarchy, official tabular instructions in both directions, clinical classification, risk adjustment, MS-DRG participation, index terms and change history — each edge carrying the CMS source it derives from.

Nearest codes (40)

G0451 — Development testing, with interpretation and report, per standardized instrument form[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0452 — Molecular pathology procedure; physician interpretation and report[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0453 — Continuous intraoperative neurophysiology monitoring, from outside the operating room (remote or nearby), per patient, (attention directed exclusively to one patient) each 15 minutes (list in addition to primary procedure)[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0454 — Physician documentation of face-to-face visit for durable medical equipment determination performed by nurse practitioner, physician assistant or clinical nurse specialist[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0455 — Preparation with instillation of fecal microbiota by any method, including assessment of donor specimen[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0456 — Negative pressure wound therapy, (e.g. vacuum assisted drainage collection) using a mechanically-powered device, not durable medical equipment, including provision of cartridge and dressing(s), topical application(s), wound assessment, and instructions for ongoing care, per session; total wounds(s) surface area less than or equal to 50 square centimeters[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0457 — Negative pressure wound therapy, (e.g. vacuum assisted drainage collection) using a mechanically-powered device, not durable medical equipment, including provision of cartridge and dressing(s), topical application(s), wound assessment, and instructions for ongoing care, per session; total wounds(s) surface area greater than 50 square centimeters[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
G0458 — Low dose rate (ldr) prostate brachytherapy services, composite rate[Sibling]— CMS HCPCS Level II code set
and 32 more

Change history (2)

January 1, 2017 — Removed from the code set [Change history]— CMS release files (code change ledger)
and 1 more

Sources for this page

Codes, titles, notes, index terms and mappings on this page are transcribed from the datasets below. Relationships MedCoder computed and text MedCoder wrote are labelled where they appear.

Code, descriptors, coverage and pricing attributes Official source data: CMS HCPCS Alpha-Numeric (ANWEB) release — July 2026 quarterly update Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Change history and date-of-service validity Official source data: CMS HCPCS quarterly update files, ingested into the change ledger Release, file and checksum · Publisher’s page
Comparisons, relationships and the contextual map MedCoder structured relationship: Computed by MedCoder from the tabular notes and tables above; every derived relationship is marked as derived where it appears
Summary and FAQ answers MedCoder explanation: Written by MedCoder to explain the sources above: drafted with AI assistance, checked by a person against the release files, and labelled as MedCoder text where it appears. Not official text.

Labels on this page: Official source data · MedCoder structured relationship · MedCoder explanation. How to read the labels · All data sources and release dates

Change history

January 1, 2017
Removed from the code set
Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes; any number of devices or procedures by instrumented chemistry analyzers utilizing immunoassay, enzyme assay, tof, maldi, ldtd, desi, dart, ghpc, gc mass spectrometry), includes sample validation when performed, per date of service
January 1, 2016
Added to the code set
Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes; any number of devices or procedures by instrumented chemistry analyzers utilizing immunoassay, enzyme assay, tof, maldi, ldtd, desi, dart, ghpc, gc mass spectrometry), includes sample validation when performed, per date of service

Nearest Codes in This Family

Official HCPCS Level II classifications closest to G0479 in its code family, with their registry titles.

G0479 HCPCS Level II Code: Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes; any number of devices or procedures by instrumented chemistry analyzers utilizing immunoassay, enzyme assay, tof, maldi, ldtd, desi, dart, ghpc,…