The questioner had received this advice which was wrong. “Thank you for your enquiry regarding the revised item descriptor for item 45518, that will come into effect from 1 July 2023.The rationale of the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Clinical Committee to amend items 45515 and 45518 was that they were potentially subject to inappropriate use for the revision of cosmetic breast implants. Specifying recording of photographic evidence and the explicit wording around the exclusion of insertion of breast implants concurrent with scar revision adds clarity to the descriptors and assist in preventing cosmetic misuse. To answer your question, if the proposed scar revision does not involve the insertion of breast implants, and all of the other requirements of the items are met, items 45515 and 45518 can be claimed, regardless of whether the original surgery was for cosmetic purposes.”

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