G0479 — 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
G0479 is a HCPCS Level II code for 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. It belongs to the Procedures and Professional Services (Temporary) section. It was terminated on December 31, 2016 and is not valid on new claims.
This code has been terminated
CMS terminated G0479 on December 31, 2016. It stays in the file as history — a claim you are auditing from before that date may legitimately carry it — but it must not appear on a new claim. The adjacent codes below are the usual place to look for its replacement.
Medicare coverage: Carrier judgment
Coverage is decided by your Medicare contractor, not by national policy. Whether this is paid depends on the LCD for your jurisdiction and on what the documentation supports.
From the coverage field of the CMS Alpha-Numeric HCPCS File, release 2026Q3-Jul. This states Medicare’s position on the code, not on your particular claim.
The CMS record for G0479
- Long descriptor
- 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
- Short descriptor
- Drug test presump not opt
- Added
- January 1, 2016
- Terminated
- December 31, 2016
- BETOS
- T1H
- Pricing indicator
- 21 — Clinical lab fee schedule
The official wording. This is what the code means.
CMS's 28-character form, which is what shows up on a remittance advice.
When CMS introduced the code.
When CMS retired it.
Berenson-Eggers Type of Service — CMS's own analytic grouping.
Price subject to the national limitation amount.
Codes adjacent to G0479
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If G0479 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- G0470Federally qualified health center (fqhc) visit, mental health, established patient; a medically-necessary, face-to-face mental health encounter (one-on-one) between an established patient and a fqhc practitioner during which time one or more fqhc services are rendered and includes a typical bundle of medicare-covered services that would be furnished per diem to a patient receiving a mental health visit
- G0471Collection of venous blood by venipuncture or urine sample by catheterization from an individual in a skilled nursing facility (snf) or by a laboratory on behalf of a home health agency (hha)
- G0472Hepatitis c antibody screening, for individual at high risk and other covered indication(s)
- G0473Face-to-face behavioral counseling for obesity, group (2-10), 30 minutes
- G0475Hiv antigen/antibody, combination assay, screening
- G0476Infectious agent detection by nucleic acid (dna or rna); human papillomavirus (hpv), high-risk types (e.g., 16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59, 68) for cervical cancer screening, must be performed in addition to pap test
- G0477Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes; any number of devices or procedures, (e.g., immunoassay) capable of being read by direct optical observation only (e.g., dipsticks, cups, cards, cartridges), includes sample validation when performed, per date of serviceterminated
- G0478Drug test(s), presumptive, any number of drug classes; any number of devices or procedures, (e.g., immunoassay) read by instrument-assisted direct optical observation (e.g., dipsticks, cups, cards, cartridges), includes sample validation when performed, per date of serviceterminated
- G0480Drug test(s), definitive, utilizing (1) drug identification methods able to identify individual drugs and distinguish between structural isomers (but not necessarily stereoisomers), including, but not limited to gc/ms (any type, single or tandem) and lc/ms (any type, single or tandem and excluding immunoassays (e.g., ia, eia, elisa, emit, fpia) and enzymatic methods (e.g., alcohol dehydrogenase)), (2) stable isotope or other universally recognized internal standards in all samples (e.g., to control for matrix effects, interferences and variations in signal strength), and (3) method or drug-specific calibration and matrix-matched quality control material (e.g., to control for instrument variations and mass spectral drift); qualitative or quantitative, all sources, includes specimen validity testing, per day; 1-7 drug class(es), including metabolite(s) if performed
- G0481Drug test(s), definitive, utilizing (1) drug identification methods able to identify individual drugs and distinguish between structural isomers (but not necessarily stereoisomers), including, but not limited to gc/ms (any type, single or tandem) and lc/ms (any type, single or tandem and excluding immunoassays (e.g., ia, eia, elisa, emit, fpia) and enzymatic methods (e.g., alcohol dehydrogenase)), (2) stable isotope or other universally recognized internal standards in all samples (e.g., to control for matrix effects, interferences and variations in signal strength), and (3) method or drug-specific calibration and matrix-matched quality control material (e.g., to control for instrument variations and mass spectral drift); qualitative or quantitative, all sources, includes specimen validity testing, per day; 8-14 drug class(es), including metabolite(s) if performed
- G0482Drug test(s), definitive, utilizing (1) drug identification methods able to identify individual drugs and distinguish between structural isomers (but not necessarily stereoisomers), including, but not limited to gc/ms (any type, single or tandem) and lc/ms (any type, single or tandem and excluding immunoassays (e.g., ia, eia, elisa, emit, fpia) and enzymatic methods (e.g., alcohol dehydrogenase)), (2) stable isotope or other universally recognized internal standards in all samples (e.g., to control for matrix effects, interferences and variations in signal strength), and (3) method or drug-specific calibration and matrix-matched quality control material (e.g., to control for instrument variations and mass spectral drift); qualitative or quantitative, all sources, includes specimen validity testing, per day; 15-21 drug class(es), including metabolite(s) if performed
- G0483Drug test(s), definitive, utilizing (1) drug identification methods able to identify individual drugs and distinguish between structural isomers (but not necessarily stereoisomers), including, but not limited to gc/ms (any type, single or tandem) and lc/ms (any type, single or tandem and excluding immunoassays (e.g., ia, eia, elisa, emit, fpia) and enzymatic methods (e.g., alcohol dehydrogenase)), (2) stable isotope or other universally recognized internal standards in all samples (e.g., to control for matrix effects, interferences and variations in signal strength), and (3) method or drug-specific calibration and matrix-matched quality control material (e.g., to control for instrument variations and mass spectral drift); qualitative or quantitative, all sources, includes specimen validity testing, per day; 22 or more drug class(es), including metabolite(s) if performed
- G0490Face-to-face home health nursing visit by a rural health clinic (rhc) or federally qualified health center (fqhc) in an area with a shortage of home health agencies; (services limited to rn or lpn only)
- G0491Dialysis procedure at a medicare certified esrd facility for acute kidney injury without esrd
- G0492Dialysis procedure with single evaluation by a physician or other qualified health care professional for acute kidney injury without esrd
- G0493Skilled services of a registered nurse (rn) for the observation and assessment of the patient's condition, each 15 minutes (the change in the patient's condition requires skilled nursing personnel to identify and evaluate the patient's need for possible modification of treatment in the home health or hospice setting)
Questions about G0479
What is HCPCS code G0479?
G0479 is a HCPCS Level II code for 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. It sits in the Procedures and Professional Services (Temporary) section.
Does Medicare cover G0479?
The CMS HCPCS file marks G0479 as "Carrier judgment". Coverage is decided by your Medicare contractor, not by national policy. Whether this is paid depends on the LCD for your jurisdiction and on what the documentation supports.
Is G0479 still valid?
No. G0479 was terminated on December 31, 2016 and should not be used on new claims.