Summary & Overview
HCPCS E0370: Air Pressure Elevator for Heel
HCPCS Level II code E0370 identifies an air pressure elevator for the heel, categorized as durable medical equipment used to elevate and offload the heel with an air-pressure mechanism. Nationally, this code matters because durable medical equipment for pressure redistribution and wound prevention impacts post-acute care, home health management, and durable medical equipment (DME) program spending. Proper coding affects coverage determinations, supplier billing, and patient access to non-surgical interventions for heel pressure and related conditions.
Key payers included in the analysis are Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. The publication outlines payer coverage considerations and commonly used modifiers associated with DME billing, though specific coverage policies and prior authorization requirements vary by payer.
Readers will learn the clinical context for use of an air pressure heel elevator, the typical sites of service (outpatient clinic distribution and home use), and high-level billing considerations tied to HCPCS Level II code E0370. The report also provides benchmarks and policy context where available, highlights documentation elements that affect claims adjudication, and summarizes common payer approaches to DME coverage. Data not available in the input where specific payer policies, ICD-10 mappings, or utilization metrics would normally appear.
Billing Code Overview
HCPCS Level II code E0370 describes an air pressure elevator for heel, a device intended to provide elevation and offloading support for the heel using air pressure technology. The service type associated with this code is durable medical equipment. The typical site of service for this device is outpatient settings or home use, where patients receive or use durable medical equipment to manage heel pressure, ulceration risk, or other heel-related conditions.
Data not available in the input.
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A typical patient is an adult with plantar heel pain, Achilles insertional irritation, or a chronic heel ulcer requiring off-loading. The patient presents to an outpatient orthotics clinic or podiatry/orthopedic surgery clinic after conservative measures (rest, NSAIDs, stretching, shoe modification) provide insufficient relief. A clinician (podiatrist, orthotist, or orthopedic surgeon) evaluates the patient, documents heel pain severity, location, and functional limitation, and assesses for neuropathy or wound risk. If an air pressure elevator for the heel is indicated to raise and off-load the heel inside a shoe or postoperative shoe, the clinician documents medical necessity, orders the device, and completes a face-to-face fitting and instruction session. Typical site of service is an outpatient clinic, orthotics and prosthetics (O&P) supplier site, or durable medical equipment (DME) provider location. Follow-up visits document device tolerance, pressure adjustments, and any wound changes or pain improvement. Hospital inpatient use can occur postoperatively to protect a surgical dressing, with device provision coordinated by the DME supplier and billed per facility or DME billing rules.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
22 | Increased procedural services | Use when work, time, or complexity for device fitting is substantially greater than usual (rare for standard off-the-shelf devices). |