Summary & Overview
HCPCS Level II S9470: Nutritional Counseling, Dietitian Visit
Headline: HCPCS Level II code S9470: Nutritional Counseling by Dietitian
Lead: HCPCS Level II code S9470 is used for nutritional counseling and dietitian visits delivered in outpatient office settings and plays a role in documenting and billing dietitian-delivered nutrition services across payers nationally. Its proper use affects clinical documentation, care coordination, and payment pathways for medical nutrition interventions.
What this code represents and why it matters: S9470 denotes a dietitian-provided nutritional counseling encounter. Nationwide, the code matters because it captures nutrition-focused services that contribute to chronic disease management, preventive care, and patient education. Accurate coding influences visibility of nutrition services in patient records and impacts payer coverage determinations.
Payers covered: This summary addresses coverage contexts for Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, and UnitedHealthcare.
What readers will learn: The publication outlines typical clinical uses and billing considerations for S9470, compares it to related nutrition and preventive counseling codes, and summarizes common documentation elements and service setting expectations. It highlights where information is available and notes gaps where data are not provided.
Scope and limitations: National in focus; state-specific variations are not addressed. Data not available in the input for service-line level reimbursement metrics and payer-specific policy nuances.
Billing Code Overview
HCPCS Level II code S9470 represents nutritional counseling, dietitian visit. This code is categorized under Miscellaneous Supplies and Services and is typically used for outpatient visits provided in an office setting (POS 11). The code denotes encounters focused on dietary assessment, education, and counseling delivered by a qualified nutrition professional.
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A patient presents to an outpatient primary care office (POS 11) requesting assistance with dietary management. The visit is scheduled as a dietitian consultation coded to HCPCS Level II code S9470 for nutritional counseling, dietitian visit. The patient may be referred by a Family Medicine physician (207Q00000X) after routine screening or identified during a chronic disease follow-up visit. At check-in the front desk confirms insurance and eligibility. The dietitian or registered dietitian conducts a focused history, reviews current medications and dietary habits, assesses anthropometrics, and provides individualized nutrition education and an intervention plan. Counseling goals and follow-up are documented in the medical record, and the visit is billed using HCPCS Level II code S9470 with any applicable modifier.
Coding Specifications
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Modifiers:
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GN: Services delivered under an outpatient speech-language pathology plan of care. Use when the nutritional counseling visit is provided as part of an outpatient speech-language pathology plan of care. -
GO: Services delivered under an outpatient occupational therapy plan of care. Use when the nutritional counseling visit is provided as part of an outpatient occupational therapy plan of care. -
Provider taxonomies (associated specialties):