HCPCS code G0444 – Annual depression screening

Key takeaways

HCPCS Code G0444 covers a 5-to-15-minute annual depression screening for Medicare Part B patients, with no deductible or coinsurance.

Z13.31 (encounter for screening for depression) is the primary ICD-10 diagnosis code, and a treatment diagnosis in its place is a common denial cause.

G0444 is payable once every 12 months, after 11 full months have passed following the month of the last screening.

G0444 can share a date of service with a subsequent annual wellness visit (G0439), but never with the initial visit (G0438).

Pabau, the practice management platform we build, checks eligibility and validates claim details before a G0444 claim goes out.

HCPCS Code G0444: Definition and coverage summary

HCPCS Code G0444 is a Medicare HCPCS Level II G-code for a standardized annual depression screening. The screening happens face to face in a primary care setting and lasts 5 to 15 minutes. The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) gave adult depression screening a Grade B recommendation. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services then added it to the Medicare preventive benefit.

Under Section 4104 of the Affordable Care Act, covered preventive services that the USPSTF grades A or B carry no deductible or coinsurance. As a result, G0444 costs the patient nothing out of pocket.

The table below summarizes the key coverage parameters for HCPCS Code G0444.

What G0444 covers and what it does not

G0444 covers a single face-to-face screening encounter using a validated, standardized depression tool. A qualified primary care practitioner must complete it and document it as a preventive screen, not as treatment.

Crossing either line leads to a denial. A treatment diagnosis on a screening claim typically returns CO-11, meaning the diagnosis is inconsistent with the procedure. A screen billed with a service that already includes it can return CO-97, meaning the benefit is included in payment for another service. Our guide to medical billing denial codes explains how to work each one.

Covered under G0444:

• Administration and scoring of a validated depression screening instrument
• Brief face-to-face encounter lasting 5 to 15 minutes
• Documentation of the tool name, score, and a follow-up plan or referral if the screen is positive
• Billing on the same date as a subsequent annual wellness visit (G0439)

Not covered under G0444:

• Psychotherapy, counseling, or diagnostic psychiatric evaluation
• Crisis intervention or acute mental health treatment
• Telephone-only screening or asynchronous digital-only administration (absent specific MAC authorization)
• Billing on the same date as an initial annual wellness visit (G0438) or the Initial Preventive Physical Examination (IPPE)
• A repeat screen before 11 full months have passed following the month of the last one

Screening tools used for G0444

CMS requires a standardized, validated screening instrument for G0444, but it does not publish a list of approved tools. The PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) is the most common choice in primary care. It produces a numeric score that’s simple to document and easy for an auditor to follow.

Some MACs question the PHQ-2 on its own. If your practice uses it as a first-pass screen, document the full PHQ-9 whenever the PHQ-2 is positive, then bill G0444.

• PHQ-9: nine-item questionnaire scored 0 to 27; the most widely used option
• PHQ-2: two-item first-pass screen; confirm your MAC’s policy before billing it alone
• Beck Depression Inventory (BDI): patient self-report; document the scored version
• Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS): clinician-administered
• Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale: patient self-administered

ICD-10 diagnosis codes to pair with G0444

An incorrect primary ICD-10 code is one of the most frequent reasons G0444 claims are denied. A treatment or active-diagnosis code tells the payer the encounter was diagnostic rather than a covered preventive screen. That mismatch typically returns a CO-11 denial (diagnosis inconsistent with procedure). Lead with Z13.31, and add a secondary code only if it’s clinically justified.

Do not use F32.0 through F33.9 as the primary diagnosis on a G0444 claim. Those codes indicate an active depressive episode under treatment. They turn the visit from a preventive screen into a diagnostic encounter, and the Medicare preventive benefit no longer applies.

Who can bill G0444?

Medicare pays G0444 when a physician or another qualified primary care practitioner furnishes it in a primary care setting. The practice must also have staff-assisted depression care supports in place. Those supports make sure a positive screen leads to accurate diagnosis, effective treatment, and follow-up.

• Physicians (MD and DO)
• Nurse practitioners (NP)
• Physician assistants (PA)
• Clinical nurse specialists (CNS)

Psychiatrists and other specialty-only providers may run into MAC-specific restrictions. Check with your local MAC before billing G0444 outside a primary care setting.

Place of service requirements for G0444

Place of service (POS) tells the MAC where the screening happened, and that setting must still count as primary care. MAC guidance lists these codes for G0444:

• POS 11 (Office): the standard code for primary care billing; the non-facility rate applies
• POS 02 / POS 10 (Telehealth): telehealth outside or inside the patient’s home; check your MAC’s telehealth policy every year before billing

G0444 reimbursement rate and Medicare payment

Medicare pays G0444 through the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). The rate comes from relative value units (RVUs), adjusted by the geographic practice cost index (GPCI) for your payment locality. G0444 carries a non-facility total of 0.56 RVUs. At the 2025 conversion factor of $32.35, that works out to approximately $18 to $19 nationally.

The facility rate is lower because Medicare assumes the facility absorbs practice expense overhead. Check the current rate for your locality in the CMS Physician Fee Schedule lookup tool before billing. Rates change with each annual PFS final rule.

Documentation requirements for G0444

Incomplete documentation is a frequent cause of G0444 denials and a common trigger for post-payment audits. Each element below must appear in the medical record, not only on the claim, because MACs audit source documentation. Medical billing compliance reviews tend to catch the same two failures: no tool name, or no follow-up plan for a positive screen.

• Screening tool name: document the exact instrument (e.g., “PHQ-9 administered”)
• Score obtained: record the numeric total score and individual item responses if required by your MAC
• Date of service: must match the claim date exactly
• Time spent: state that the encounter lasted 5 to 15 minutes. Don’t record less than 5 minutes.
• Provider credentials: the billing provider’s NPI and credential type must be in the record
• Plan of care for positive screen: document a referral to behavioral health, counseling, or a watch-and-wait plan. A positive PHQ-9 with no follow-up documented is an audit flag.
• Attestation of screening nature: note explicitly that this was a preventive screening encounter, not a diagnostic or treatment visit

Billing G0444 with the annual wellness visit

G0444 can be billed on the same date as a subsequent Annual Wellness Visit (AWV), coded G0439. Medicare does not pay G0444 on the same date as the initial AWV (G0438) or the Initial Preventive Physical Examination (IPPE). Both of those visits already include a review of depression risk.

The Health Risk Assessment (HRA) inside the AWV may include depression questions too. G0444 is still a distinct preventive service, with its own tool, score, and time. Getting a clean claim on a same-day G0439 and G0444 visit comes down to four steps.

1. Document the screening as a separate service. The HRA may cover depression questions, but billing G0444 separately needs a discrete screening record with its own tool, score, and time notation.
2. Bill G0444 only alongside G0439. List G0444 and G0439 on the same claim, each on its own line, with the same date of service. If the visit is an initial AWV (G0438) or an IPPE, don’t bill G0444 that day.
3. Do not append Modifier 25 to G0444. G0444 is a preventive code and does not require Modifier 25. If a separately identifiable E/M service is also performed on the same day, append Modifier 25 to the E/M code, not to G0444.
4. Check both frequency histories before the visit. The AWV and G0444 each have their own once-a-year limit. A claim billed too early for either one will deny.

G0444 vs CPT 96127: Key differences

G0444 and CPT 96127 (brief emotional or behavioral assessment) both involve standardized screening instruments, so coders often mix them up. For the annual depression screen, Medicare expects G0444. CPT 96127 is the code most commercial payers and Medicaid plans use instead. A Medicare claim that reports 96127 for this screen is typically denied or rejected under payer policy.

Modifiers with G0444

G0444 doesn’t need a modifier when billed as a stand-alone preventive screening. Modifier mistakes usually happen on same-day visits that combine G0444 with an E/M service or an AWV. On those visits, the modifier belongs on the E/M line.

• Modifier 25 on same-day E/M: For a separately identifiable E/M on the same date, add Modifier 25 to the E/M code (e.g., 99213-25). This signals that the E/M was significant and separate from the screening.
• Modifier 59 for separate services: If a payer bundles G0444 with another service, Modifier 59 on G0444 can show it was distinct. Use it only when a bundling edit is the denial reason.
• Do not append GY or GX to G0444: G0444 is a covered Medicare preventive benefit. GY (item or service statutorily excluded) and GX (voluntary ABN) do not apply.
• Telehealth modifiers: If your MAC covers G0444 via telehealth, bill POS 02 or POS 10 and follow your MAC’s telehealth modifier instructions. Some MACs require Modifier 95.

Common G0444 claim denial reasons and how to fix them

G0444 denials follow a predictable pattern, and practices that audit them keep finding the same six causes. Each fix is just as predictable, which makes denial management workflows for G0444 easy to standardize. Running insurance eligibility verification before the visit catches coverage problems before submission.

Five checks, run in order before every G0444 claim goes out, prevent most of these denials.

When a claim still comes back denied, the table below maps each cause to its usual code and fix.

Frequency rules: How often can G0444 be billed?

G0444 is payable once every 12 months, and Medicare counts the interval in whole months. At least 11 full months must pass following the month of the last screening. If a patient received G0444 on March 15, the next payable date is March 1 of the following year. A claim dated January 10 of that year is premature and will deny.

Before each G0444 submission, check the patient’s claim history under their Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI). Confirm that no G0444 was paid inside that window. Pabau’s error-catching claims software adds a second layer, with validation checks and real-time eligibility checks before each claim is sent.

G0444 via telehealth: What Medicare allows

Telehealth coverage for G0444 expanded during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, and later legislation extended some of those flexibilities. The current rule depends on your MAC and changes annually, so no single statement applies to every jurisdiction.

Before billing G0444 via telehealth, check the CMS telehealth services list and your MAC’s current LCD or coverage article. If G0444 is on this year’s list and your MAC permits it, bill POS 02 or POS 10. POS 02 covers telehealth outside the patient’s home, and POS 10 covers telehealth in it.

Follow your MAC’s telehealth modifier instructions, since some require Modifier 95. If G0444 isn’t on the list or your MAC doesn’t allow it, deliver the screening in person at an accepted POS. The PGM Billing HCPCS lookup tool is a quick way to confirm current status before each year’s billing cycle begins.

How Pabau keeps G0444 claims clean from screening to payment

Many primary care practices run G0444 across three or four tools. The PHQ-9 sits on paper or in the EHR, the claim goes out through a separate billing system, and eligibility gets checked by phone. Each handoff is another chance for a wrong code or a missed date.

Pabau keeps those steps on one patient record. The screening note, the invoice, and the patient’s insurer details live together. When you send the claim, Pabau pre-fills it from that record and runs validation checks in the background. In the US, claims go out through Claim.MD, with real-time eligibility checks and ERA remittance posting in the same dashboard.

Your team rekeys less and sees the status of every G0444 claim, from submitted to paid. That leaves more time for the follow-up a positive screen needs.

Keep G0444 claims clean from screening to payment

Pabau pre-fills claims from the patient record, checks eligibility in real time, and tracks each claim from submission to payment. Your team spends less time reworking preventive screening claims.

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Conclusion

G0444 rarely fails on the clinical side. It fails on timing and pairing. Think of a screen billed a few weeks early, a G0444 added to an initial AWV, or an F-code where Z13.31 belongs.

So build the five checks into the visit itself, not the billing queue. Confirm the payer and the last screening date at scheduling, and record the tool and score before the patient leaves. The trade-off is a minute of front-desk work per patient against an $18 claim that’s hard to win back on appeal.

If you’d like to see how Pabau checks eligibility and pre-fills preventive screening claims from the patient record, book a demo.

Continue your research

Need to understand the denial codes hitting your G0444 claims? Denial codes in medical billing explains the most common CARC and RARC codes and how to action each one.

Billing G0444 alongside a wellness visit? HCPCS code G0439 covers the billing rules for the subsequent annual wellness visit.

Running other Medicare preventive screens? HCPCS code G0442 walks through billing the annual alcohol misuse screening.

Want to reduce claim rework across your entire billing cycle? Revenue cycle management fundamentals covers the end-to-end workflow from eligibility verification to payment posting.

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