Medicare Physician Fee Schedule · Q3 2026 release
CPT 70551 in Charleston, SC 11202-01
Brain mri without contrast in ZIPs including 29401, 29201, and 29601
11202-01
A
Active
- Medicare payment
- $147.16
- Patient / secondary
- $36.79
- Expected total to provider
- $183.95
Patient / secondary and expected total to provider assume the Part B annual deductible is already met. If it isn't, the patient owes more than the amount shown here.
Status A Medicare calculates a national payment amount for this code and pays it separately when the service is covered. Full definition → Locality-adjusted Physician Fee Schedule pricing
Formula
(work_rvu × work_gpci + pe_rvu × pe_gpci + mp_rvu × mp_gpci) × conversion_factor
Citations
-
Physician relative value file (PPRRVU)
PPRRVU2026_Jul_nonQPP.csv
in
rvu26c-updated-06-30-2026.zip
(row 7,796)
- hcpcs (col 1)
- 70551
- status_code (col 4)
- A
- work_rvu (col 6)
- 1.44
- pe_rvu_nonfacility (col 7)
- 4.31
- pe_rvu_facility (col 9)
- 4.31
- mp_rvu (col 11)
- 0.1
-
Geographic practice cost indices (GPCI)
GPCI2026.csv
in
rvu26c-updated-06-30-2026.zip
(row 93)
- work_gpci (col 5)
- 1
- pe_gpci (col 6)
- 0.924
- mp_gpci (col 7)
- 0.85
-
Physician relative value file (PPRRVU)
PPRRVU2026_Jul_nonQPP.csv
in
rvu26c-updated-06-30-2026.zip
(row 11)
- conversion_factor (col 26)
- 33.4009
How much does Medicare allow for CPT 70551 in Charleston, SC? Copy link
The Medicare allowed amount is $183.95 in the office (non-facility) and facility settings, under the Q3 2026 Physician Fee Schedule. That is 5.9% below the national baseline. This is the fee schedule amount before sequestration and before any deductible or coinsurance is applied — not necessarily what a specific claim pays.
What Medicare locality is Charleston, SC in? Copy link
CMS prices all of South Carolina as one Medicare payment locality, so this amount applies statewide, including Columbia, Greenville and Myrtle Beach — not only in Charleston, SC.
Why Charleston, SC differs from the national amount Copy link
The national figure is a baseline, not an amount any provider is paid. This locality's geographic practice cost indices scale each RVU component before the conversion factor is applied, which puts Charleston, SC at 5.9% below the national baseline.
Formula and inputs Copy link
The office (non-facility) amount for 70551 in Charleston, SC: each component's RVU times its GPCI, summed, then multiplied by the conversion factor.
| Component | RVU | × GPCI | = Adjusted RVU |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work | 1.44 | 1.000 | 1.4400 |
| Practice expense | 4.31 | 0.924 | 3.9824 |
| Malpractice | 0.10 | 0.850 | 0.0850 |
| Sum of adjusted RVUs | 5.5074 | ||
| × $33.4009 2026 conversion factor | $183.95 | ||
Participating, non-participating and limiting charge Copy link
All figures are for the office (non-facility) setting in Charleston, SC. The allowed amount is not the program payment — the rows below separate them. See how the limiting charge and sequestration are derived.
| Participating allowed amount The fee schedule amount a participating provider accepts as payment in full. | $183.95 |
|---|---|
| Non-participating allowed amount 95% of the participating amount. | $174.75 |
| Limiting charge Ceiling a non-participating provider may bill the patient on an unassigned claim — 115% of the non-participating amount. | $200.96 |
| Medicare program payment 80% of the allowed amount, once the annual Part B deductible is met. | $147.16 |
| Beneficiary coinsurance The remaining 20%. | $36.79 |
| Sequestration adjustment Reduces Medicare's share only — never the allowed amount, and never the patient's share. | $2.94 |
| Medicare pays after sequestration Program payment net of the sequestration reduction. | $144.22 |
Contracted rate: % of Medicare in Charleston, SC Copy link
Commercial contracts are usually written as a percentage of the Medicare fee schedule. Which Medicare amount they mean is the part that gets misread: a contract benchmarked to the fee schedule prices off this locality's allowed amount — $183.95 in the office (non-facility) setting — not the $195.40 national baseline.
Opens the calculator already set to Charleston, SC and the office (non-facility) setting. It also compares what a payer actually paid against the expected amount. See how to find your contract's actual percentage.
ZIP codes this Charleston, SC rate covers Copy link
The CMS ZIP-to-locality crosswalk maps 544 ZIP codes to this payment locality. 70551 prices identically in every one of them.
444 more ZIP codes map to this locality. The Charleston, SC locality page lists the full set.
Resolves the ZIP to its payment locality, so you can confirm whether this amount applies.
70551 in nearby payment localities Copy link
Payment localities in the same region as Charleston, SC, nearest first. Each amount is that locality's own GPCI-adjusted office (non-facility) figure for 70551. Proximity doesn't imply similar pricing — neighbouring localities often differ.
| Metro | Allowed amount | vs. Charleston, SC |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte, NC | $184.54 | +0.3% |
| Atlanta, GA | $198.51 | +7.9% |
| Richmond, VA | $191.97 | +4.4% |
| Tampa, FL | $190.74 | +3.7% |
| Birmingham, AL | $175.95 | -4.3% |
| Nashville, TN | $180.75 | -1.7% |
Every payment locality nationwide is on the CPT 70551 rate map.
Other codes priced in Charleston, SC Copy link
Office (non-facility) allowed amounts in this same payment locality, Q3 2026.
| Code | Service | Charleston, SC | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| 72148 | Lumbar Spine MRI Without Contrast | $180.56 | -5.8% |
| 70553 | Brain MRI With and Without Contrast | $298.15 | -5.9% |
| 73721 | Lower-Extremity Joint MRI Without Contrast | $192.01 | -6.1% |
| 72141 | Cervical Spine MRI Without Contrast | $179.63 | -5.8% |
| 73221 | Upper-Extremity Joint MRI Without Contrast | $192.62 | -6.1% |
| 74183 | Abdominal MRI With and Without Contrast | $315.54 | -6.1% |
| 72146 | MRI | $179.32 | -5.8% |
| 72197 | Pelvic MRI With and Without Contrast | $314.00 | -6.1% |
| 77049 | MRI | $319.16 | -6.0% |
| 73222 | MRI | $292.61 | -6.4% |
| 70552 | MRI | $252.56 | -6.1% |
| 73722 | MRI | $294.77 | -6.4% |
Common questions Copy link
Which ZIP codes does the Charleston, SC rate for 70551 cover?
Why is the 70551 rate in Charleston, SC different from the national amount?
Does this 70551 rate apply everywhere in South Carolina?
What is the non-participating amount and limiting charge for 70551 in Charleston, SC?
How much of the Charleston, SC 70551 rate does Medicare actually pay?
Source & method Copy link
Computed from the CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Q3 2026 release : this code's RVUs from the relative value file, multiplied by payment locality 11202-01's GPCIs, then by the 2026 conversion factor of $33.4009. ZIP coverage from the CMS ZIP-to-locality crosswalk, Q3 2026 release . Releases are immutable: an amount retrieved for a past quarter always reflects that PFS release. Coverage and coding correctness are outside this calculation.
Working a claim with an earlier date of service? The calculator prices 70551 in Charleston, SC against the release that governed that date. The last 12 months price without an account; older dates of service need a free account.
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