CPT 90847: Family Psychotherapy with Patient Present
Family psychotherapy (conjoint psychotherapy) with the patient present, approximately 50 minutes. Therapy involving the patient and one or more family members.
Why CPT 90847 Claims Get Denied
Claims billed under CPT 90847 are frequently denied or downcoded for the following reasons. Understanding these patterns helps your practice reduce denial rates and recover revenue faster.
Not authorized by patient's plan for family therapy
Provider credential not accepted for family therapy
Billed on same day as individual therapy session
Prior authorization not obtained
Billing Tips for CPT 90847
Verify that the patient's plan covers family therapy. Document who was present in the session and the therapeutic focus. Do not typically bill on the same day as individual psychotherapy. Some payers require specific credentials for family therapy billing.
Documentation Requirements
To support a clean claim for CPT 90847, your clinical documentation should include:
Identification of all participants
Therapeutic focus and interventions used
Patient's and family's response to therapy
Progress toward treatment goals
Updated treatment plan
Common Modifiers for CPT 90847
Reduce CPT 90847 Denials by 60%
RediClaim's pre-submission scrubber catches documentation gaps and coding errors before you submit, while the appeal generator handles denials that slip through.