During the ADA’s Code Maintenance Committee (CMC) meeting in March of 2024, it was determined that a substantial reworking of the sedation and anesthesia CDT codes was necessary, prompted by several anesthesia-related submissions for CDT 2025. These changes were discussed during the action request review period and at the actual March 2024 CMC meeting. A working group was established at the direction of the Council on Dental Benefit Programs (CDBP) following a recommendation from the CMC.
Your practice utilizes CDT codes every day to document, report, and bill for the dental services performed. Reporting outdated or deleted codes leads to denied or delayed claims, which means it is essential that your team stays up to date on all annual CDT changes. Codes changes voted on and accepted in March of 2025 become effective on January 1, 2026.Be sure your team meets before year end to review and understand all the code changes enacted.
The 2025 Code Maintenance Committee (CMC) has finalized the Current Dental Terminology (CDT) for 2026. The CMC’s action includes 60 total changes: 31 additions, 14 revisions, 9 editorial changes, and 6 deletions. To meet HIPAA requirements, all dental claims for services performed between January 1 and December 31, 2026, must utilize the appropriate code from CDT 2026.
Current Dental Terminology (CDT) – officially known as the Code on Dental Procedures and Nomenclature – provides a uniform, consistent, and accurate method of documenting dental procedures. This is its primary purpose; to be the universal language of dentistry. The American Dental Association (ADA) is the sole publisher and copyright holder of the CDT code set and is responsible for updating the code each year to meet the current needs and trends of the practice of Dentistry.
In accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the CDT code set also serves as the national terminology for reporting dental procedures to insurance and third-party payors.
This means that for a dental claim to be processed correctly, the claim must have valid and accurate CDT codes from the most current CDT code set. Since 2020, there have been 249 CDT code changes, and
there are 60 more changes coming in 2026. How do these changes occur, and who decides what changes should be made? Let’s take a peek behind the curtain.
The American Dental Association’s Code Maintenance Committee (CMC) is responsible for maintaining the Code on Dental Procedures and Terminology (CDT) code set. The committee meets annually and is charged with evaluating all submitted code change requests. The CMC votes to accept, amend, or decline each request based on the best interests of the dental profession, patients, and third-party payers and administrators.
Your practice utilizes CDT codes every day to document, report, and bill for the dental services performed. Reporting outdated or deleted codes leads to denied or delayed claims, which means it is essential that your team stays up to date on all annual CDT changes. New and revised 2024 CDT codes become effective on January 1, 2025. Be sure your team meets before year end to review and understand all the code changes enacted.