Medicare AdvantageBilling CodesMedium impact
Benign Skin Lesions and Viral Infectious Lesion Removal
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island·RI · Dermatology, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine +1 more·Physician / Facility
We identified it
Jun 20, 2026
Summary
BlueCHiP for Medicare and commercial plans now require cosmetic benign skin lesion and viral infectious lesion removals to be coded with diagnosis Z41.1, which will result in automatic claim denials as not covered.
Action Required
Immediately: Billing team must update coding protocols to use diagnosis code Z41.1 for all cosmetic benign skin lesion and viral infectious lesion removals on BlueCHiP Medicare and commercial claims. Train providers to clearly document medical necessity versus cosmetic nature in procedure notes. Claims coded with Z41.1 will be automatically denied.