D8060 was the CDT code for interceptive orthodontic treatment of the transitional, mixed dentition, deleted effective January 1, 2022.
- When to use: It belongs only on dates of service through December 31, 2021, such as the original banding claim on an older case.
- When not to use: A limited mixed-dentition case is now D8020, full-bite correction at that stage is D8070, and a habit appliance is D8210 or D8220.
- Billing note: Deactivate D8060 and D8050 in the PMS and stored payer fee schedules, and correct and resubmit any claim rejected for the deleted code.
What D8060 used to report
D8060 reported interceptive orthodontic treatment of the transitional dentition, the mixed stage where a patient has some primary (baby) teeth alongside erupting permanent teeth. Its sibling, D8050, covered the same treatment one stage earlier, in the primary dentition. Those two codes were the entire interceptive subcategory.
Interceptive meant early intervention while the patient was still growing, aimed at a developing problem, to redirect it or reduce the treatment needed once the permanent teeth came in. Examples: a crossbite corrected before it entrenched, an arch given room before crowding set, a habit appliance placed while the habit was still shaping the bite. In billing terms, D8060 was the usual code for a phase-one case in a mixed dentition.
Why the ADA deleted it
The interceptive and limited codes described the same cases. Limited treatment is defined by scope: one defined problem rather than full correction of the bite. Interceptive treatment was defined by timing and intent: early, growth-related, preventive of later work. In a real chart they land on the same patient. A phase-one crossbite correction in a nine-year-old is limited in scope and interceptive in timing at once. Billers had to guess which subcategory the payer wanted, and surveyed AAO members named the choice as one of their top three problems with the code.
CDT 2022 made two changes, effective together on January 1, 2022:
- It deleted the interceptive orthodontic treatment subcategory outright: the heading, the descriptor, and both codes, D8050 and D8060.
- It revised the limited descriptor to cover treatment with a limited objective or scale at any stage of dental development. Two of its listed examples describe the old interceptive case exactly: one phase of a multi-phase treatment, and treatment delivered before the permanent teeth are in. A former D8060 case belongs in the limited family on its own terms.
Scope now decides the family and dentition stage decides the code within it. Timing is no longer a coding axis.
The same change also deleted D8690, the old alternative-billing-to-a-contract-fee code, so a code table that still has D8060 very likely has D8690 too.
What to bill instead, and how to choose
The ADA’s instruction was to report former interceptive cases under the applicable limited orthodontic code:
- D8010 for the primary dentition (all baby teeth).
- D8020 for the transitional dentition (mixed primary and permanent).
- D8030 for the adolescent dentition (permanent teeth essentially in).
- D8040 for the adult dentition.
First confirm the appliance was moving teeth. A habit appliance is appliance therapy, D8210 or D8220, and an appliance holding space after early loss of a primary tooth is a space maintainer in the preventive series. The D8050 page covers that split.
Then two questions decide the code, in this order.
Is the scope limited or comprehensive? Limited treatment has one defined problem as its objective. Comprehensive treatment corrects the full malocclusion across both arches as a complete course of care. The descriptor names a phase-one case as an example of a limited objective, so most old D8060 cases are limited. But an early case that takes on the full malocclusion across both arches is comprehensive even in a mixed dentition, and that is D8070. Read the treatment plan rather than assuming early means small. In the PMS, keep the comprehensive codes as visible as the limited ones; the old interceptive framing trained people out of checking.
What dentition stage did the dentist document? That picks the code within the family, based on what is in the mouth, not chronological age. A former D8060 case is transitional by definition and usually maps to D8020, but confirm it against the records, because a case that started as early treatment can reach banding after the patient has moved into the adolescent dentition.
The AAO also clarified that the orthodontic treatment codes may be reported more than once for a patient when circumstances warrant, including a comprehensive code for phase one and again for phase two. Whether a plan pays twice is plan-dependent, but the codebook does not forbid it. The old interceptive code often signaled “first of two phases.” That signal now belongs in the narrative and records, not the code.
When a payer or a code table still has D8060 in it
This still costs offices money. The AAO documented that after CDT 2022 some carriers and state Medicaid offices failed to adjust adjudication and payment properly, and it took the issue to payers and the National Association of Dental Plans. Several state Medicaid programs published their own deleted-code notices mapping D8050 and D8060 to replacements.
The residue is still in three places:
- A payer fee schedule or provider portal that still lists D8060. A stale entry does not make the code billable. Bill the current limited code. If the claim rejects, or pays at what looks like the old interceptive rate, work it as a payer-side error and cite the CDT 2022 change list in the appeal.
- A benefit quote or pre-authorization written against the old code. A pre-auth approving D8060 approved the treatment, but whether the payer’s system honors it against a different code is plan-dependent. Confirm in writing which current code the approval maps to before filing, and note the reference on the account. This is where a phase-one case quietly loses its approval.
- Old EOBs and ledgers. A 2021 EOB showing D8060 paid is correct history; do not restate it. When a patient transfers in mid-treatment with prior EOBs showing D8060, that history is your proof of what the previous plan paid, and it belongs in the Box 35 remarks with the original banding date. See the orthodontic insurance billing guide for how work-in-progress and takeover claims are worded.
Carrier behavior varies by plan and state program, so verify the payer’s current position.
In the PMS:
- Deactivate D8060, D8050, and D8690 rather than relabeling them. A code that is still selectable will eventually get selected.
- Point the old phase-one workflow at the limited codes. Any macro, favorite, or template that used to drop in D8060 should drop in the limited code for the documented stage, usually D8020.
- Fix stored payer plan records that still carry D8060. Estimates built on that code are built on a code that cannot be billed.
FAQs
- Is D8060 still a valid dental code?
- No. D8060, interceptive orthodontic treatment of the transitional dentition, was deleted effective January 1, 2022, when CDT 2022 removed the entire interceptive subcategory, including its heading, descriptor, and both codes, D8050 and D8060. A claim under D8060 with a date of service from January 1, 2022 forward rejects as an invalid or deleted code. If your practice management software still lists it, deactivate it.
- What replaced D8060?
- Usually D8020. The ADA said to report former interceptive cases under the applicable limited code: D8010 (primary), D8020 (transitional), D8030 (adolescent), or D8040 (adult dentition). D8060 covered the transitional, mixed dentition, so D8020 is the usual replacement, but pick by the dentition stage the dentist documents. A case that fully corrects the malocclusion is comprehensive treatment, D8070 in the transitional dentition.
- Why did the ADA delete D8050 and D8060?
- Because nobody could reliably tell an interceptive case from a limited one. The procedures were clinically much the same, and surveyed AAO members named the choice between them as one of their top coding problems. Effective January 1, 2022, the ADA deleted the interceptive subcategory and revised the limited descriptor to cover treatment with a limited objective or scale at any stage of dental development.
- A payer still lists D8060 on our fee schedule. Should we bill it?
- No. Bill the current limited code and fix the fee schedule separately. Some carriers and state Medicaid programs were slow to update after CDT 2022, and the AAO raised it with payers and the National Association of Dental Plans. A stale entry is not authorization to use a deleted code and will not protect the claim on audit. If the payer rejects the correct code or pays what looks like the old interceptive fee, work it as a payer-side error with the CDT 2022 change list attached. If a claim rejected because you sent D8060, correct the code and resubmit; there is nothing to appeal.
- Our ortho case was banded in 2021 under D8060 and continued into 2022. What happens to the continuation claims?
- They use a current code; the original claim keeps D8060. D8060 was valid through December 31, 2021, so the 2021 banding claim was correct and should not be restated. Continuation and periodic visit claims dated January 1, 2022 or later use a current code, so the payer's records will show two codes across the case. Note the banding date and original code in the remarks so the continuation claims reconcile against the open case.
- What was the difference between interceptive and limited orthodontic treatment?
- Interceptive was defined by timing and intent: intervening early, while the patient was growing, to head off a developing problem or reduce later treatment. Limited is defined by scope: one defined problem instead of the whole bite. In the chart the two usually described the same cases, so the distinction collapsed. The current codebook keeps only scope: a narrow objective is limited (D8010 through D8040 by dentition stage), and full correction is comprehensive (D8070 through D8090).
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CDT codes are maintained by the American Dental Association. This page is an editorial billing guide, not the official ADA code descriptor. Verify current coverage policies with each carrier before submitting claims.