CPT 38225
Bundled / not separately paid
38225 · PFS Q3 2026
Status B is not separately payable under the PFS.
Not at a published national rate. CPT 38225 carries status B (bundled) in the Q3 2026 release. Medicare folds payment for this code into the service it is incident to, never onto its own line. Treat the blank amount as unpriced, not as $0.
PFS status evidence
Inspect PFS status evidence
- Code
- 38225
- Release
- Q3 2026, revision 1
- Result
- Bundled / not separately paid
Citations
-
Establishes the PFS status (B) and the resulting pathway for this code: bundled / not separately paid.
Physician relative value file (PPRRVU)Q3 2026 · revision 1
Latest revision of this release
Release period: July 1 – September 30, 2026
This PFS record alone does not establish a $0 allowance or a coverage determination. Any amount from another schedule needs its own evidence.
Record details
PPRRVU2026_Jul_nonQPP.csv in rvu26c-updated-06-30-2026.zip (row 4,665)- hcpcs (col 1)
- 38225
- modifier (col 2)
- blank
- status_code (col 4)
- B
SHA-256: b7d197e73211ef6854c213c267d5fa9dec8df995db8e1ee7d44c0556ad7cee21
Why is there no national PFS amount for 38225?
Its status indicator is B (bundled). Medicare folds payment for this code into the service it is incident to, never onto its own line. Status B is not separately payable under the PFS.
Payment considerations Copy link
Review the applicable inputs and payment rules. Each link opens the supporting detail on this page.
Other payment indicators (9)
Facility/non-facility: Not determined, Professional/technical component: Does not apply, Bilateral adjustment: Does not apply, Multiple-procedure reduction: Does not apply, Assistant/co-surgeon treatment: Does not apply, Global surgery: Does not apply, MUE behavior: Not determined, Other fee-schedule routing: Does not apply, Contractor pricing: Does not apply.
Why a 38225 line may not pay separately Copy link
CMS publishes no separately payable amount for 38225 in this release, so reconciling the line means establishing which status governed the date of service rather than chasing a fee-schedule difference.
What to reconcile
- Confirm the status that governed the date of service before working this line as a short payment—CMS publishes no separately payable fee-schedule amount for it in this release.
- Check the place of service: CMS publishes no office (non-facility) practice-expense amount for this code, so it prices in a facility setting only.
- Reprice the line against the release, locality, setting, modifier and participation status that applied to the date of service before treating any difference as an underpayment.
Nearby payment lines
National Q3 2026 amounts at GPCI 1.000. A blank means this schedule does not publish a payable PFS amount.
Sources: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files; CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files (status indicator field); CMS Practice Expense methodology (cms.gov).
Global period: what 38225's fee already covers Copy link
The global surgery concept does not apply to this code.
Can you bill it with another code? Copy link
Enter a second CPT or HCPCS code billed on the same date of service. We'll check the current NCCI procedure-to-procedure edit between it and 38225.
Billing together (NCCI edits) Copy link
NCCI Q3 2026Based on CMS's National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI). A few examples appear here; use the complete edit page to check a specific pair.
Not separately payable with 38225 on the same date of service—no modifier bypasses the edit (modifier indicator 0)
Showing 3 of 40.
Separately payable with 38225 only when an NCCI-associated modifier is appropriate and documented (modifier indicator 1)
Showing 3 of 149.
Modifier 59 and the X modifiers are not a universal bypass—CMS expects the most specific applicable modifier, and which one that is depends on the pair and the documented circumstances.
Common payment questions Copy link
Why would a Medicare claim for 38225 be denied or paid less?
These come from CMS indicators on this page, not general billing advice.
- Its status indicator is B (bundled)—Medicare folds payment for this code into the service it is incident to, never onto its own line. See status indicators
- 40 codes form NCCI pairs with 38225 carrying modifier indicator 0—no NCCI-associated modifier bypasses the edit, so billed together on the same date of service, a line of the pair denies. See billing together
- 149 codes pair with 38225 under modifier indicator 1—separately payable only when an NCCI-associated modifier (59, or a more specific XE, XS, XP, or XU) is clinically appropriate and the documentation supports a distinct service; without one, a line of the pair denies. See billing together
Payer-specific coverage and documentation rules live outside these files, so a claim that clears every check here can still be denied on other grounds.
Rate history by release Copy link
National non-facility amount for 38225 across quarterly releases.
| Release | Status | Non-facility | Facility |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q4 2026 takes effect Oct 1, 2026 | B | — | — |
| Q3 2026 Jul 1, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026 | B | — | — |
| Q2 2026 Apr 1, 2026 – Jun 30, 2026 | B | — | — |
| Q1 2026 Jan 1, 2026 – Mar 31, 2026 | B | — | — |
| Q4 2025 Oct 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2025 | B | — | — |
| Q3 2025 Jul 1, 2025 – Sep 30, 2025 | B | — | — |
| Q2 2025 Apr 1, 2025 – Jun 30, 2025 | B | — | — |
| Q1 2025 Jan 1, 2025 – Mar 31, 2025 | B | — | — |
When does this rate change?
CMS publishes a fee schedule release every quarter (January, April, July, October), and each is versioned here. See what changed each release, or get an email when a new release moves rates.
Sources: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files.
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Source & method
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This page uses CMS's Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Q3 2026 release (effective July 2026). National baselines use GPCI 1.000 and exclude sequestration. Status and payment instructions determine whether a national amount is established; blank RVUs stay blank. Releases are immutable: historical evidence remains tied to the specified release. Our methodology covers the depth: sourcing, parsing, versioning, and how we cross-check claims before they ship.
Use the (i) buttons next to each amount above for the exact row, columns, and math.
Cite this rate
This citation identifies the source release, so its evidence remains reproducible after a newer release lands.
CPT 38225 National PFS baseline: No national PFS rate (Q3 2026; participating; whole service; GPCI 1.000; sequestration excluded). Localis. https://localishealth.com/cpt/38225/2026/C