Participating physician · Before sequestration
CMS evidence · Q4 2023 release
( Work0.43 × 1.000 + Practice exp.0.35 × 1.000 + Malpractice0.02 × 1.000 ) × Conv. factor$33.8872 = $27.11
F Work RVU
0.43
G Non‑facility PE RVU
0.35
K MP RVU
0.02
Y Conversion factor
33.8872
( Work0.43 × 1.000 + Practice exp.0.20 × 1.000 + Malpractice0.02 × 1.000 ) × Conv. factor$33.8872 = $22.03
F Work RVU
0.43
I Facility PE RVU
0.20
K MP RVU
0.02
Y Conversion factor
33.8872
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Physician relative value file (PPRRVU) · PPRRVU23_OCT.csv row 14,827 in rvu23d.zip Download from CMS
Loading rows 14,825–14,829 of PPRRVU23_OCT.csv…
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Physician relative value file (PPRRVU) · PPRRVU23_OCT.csv row 14,827 in rvu23d.zip Download from CMS
Loading rows 14,825–14,829 of PPRRVU23_OCT.csv…
Nationally priced under PFS, using the RVU formula.
CMS RVU23DOctober 1 – December 31, 2023
The national PFS baseline was $27.11 for CPT 80503 in the Office (non-facility) setting and $22.03 in a facility under the Q4 2023 Physician Fee Schedule, effective October 2023. These are the national allowed amounts before locality (GPCI) adjustment; sequestration is excluded.
Why are the facility and non-facility amounts different?
Only the practice-expense RVU changes with the setting. For 80503 it's 0.35 RVUs in the Office (non-facility) setting versus 0.20 in a facility—the whole $5.08 gap between $27.11 and $22.03. In the Office (non-facility) setting the practice bears the overhead, so the allowed amount is higher; in a hospital or ASC the facility bills its own fee, so the professional amount is lower. See facility vs non-facility.
Sources: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files; CMS Practice Expense methodology (cms.gov).
Contract rate as % of Medicare Copy link
Applies to your locality's allowed amount, not the $27.11 national baseline. How to find your contract's percentage.
Need rates from another insurer? Join the waitlist →
Allowed amount, Medicare's share, and patient share Copy link
A physician's $27.11 Office (non-facility) allowed amount: Medicare pays $21.26 after sequestration and the patient owes $5.42, once the Part B deductible is met.
| Billed by | Allowed amount | Participating claim | If not participating | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What Medicare pays | Patient coinsurance | Non-participating amount | Limiting charge | ||
| Physician (MD/DO) 100% Calculator | $27.11 | $21.26 $21.69 − $0.43 | $5.42 | $25.75 | $29.61 |
| Physician assisting at surgery (-80, -81, -82) 16% Calculator | $4.34 | $3.40 $3.47 − $0.07 | $0.87 | Not shown for assistant rows | |
|
16% of the fee schedule amount, but only if documentation shows the assistant was medically necessary. |
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National Q4 2023, GPCI 1.000. Rows are provider types with at least 1% of 80503’s Medicare services in CMS’s CY2024 Physician & Other Practitioners data; each % applies before the 80/20 split and sequestration.
Is $27.11 what a practice actually receives?
It's the national allowed amount—the starting point. Medicare pays 80% of it ($21.69) and the patient owes 20% coinsurance ($5.42). Sequestration trims Medicare's share by about 2%, your locality's GPCIs scale the total up or down, and the expected-payment calculator applies all three. That payment is practice revenue that covers staff, space, equipment, and billing. It isn't the clinician's take-home pay. The practice-expense RVU above is CMS's estimate of that overhead share.
Sources: Budget Control Act sequestration provisions; CMS Medicare Fee-for-Service payment guidance; CMS Geographic Practice Cost Index (GPCI) files; CMS Physician Fee Schedule overview (cms.gov).
What's the non-participating amount for 80503?
$25.75 in the Office (non-facility) setting—95% of the $27.11 participating fee schedule amount above. A participating provider takes the fee schedule amount as payment in full on every claim. A non-participating provider is paid this reduced amount, but chooses claim by claim whether to accept assignment. See participating vs non-participating.
Sources: CMS Physician Fee Schedule overview (cms.gov); CMS Medicare Fee-for-Service payment guidance.
What's the limiting charge for 80503?
$29.61 in the Office (non-facility) setting—the ceiling on what a non-participating provider can bill the patient on an unassigned claim. That's 109.25% of the $27.11 amount above. The non-participating amount is 95% of the fee schedule rate ($25.75), and the statutory cap is 115% of that. See limiting charge.
Sources: CMS Physician Fee Schedule overview (cms.gov); CMS Medicare Fee-for-Service payment guidance.
CMS RVU23DOctober 1 – December 31, 2023 See file rows
Which billing rules and modifiers apply? Copy link
CMS's surgical and split-billing indicators don't adjust 80503's amount.
Global surgery period XXX (does not apply). Assistant at surgery, only if documented: -80/81/82 $4.34 · -AS $3.69. Not payable with 80503: -26/TC · -50 · -62 · -66.
Modifier amounts are derived, not a CMS column: Localis applies the standard MPFS percentage to the national Office (non-facility) amount. Check them against the Claims Processing Manual. If documented means paid only when documentation of medical necessity is submitted. Locality-adjusted amounts.
Why would a Medicare claim for 80503 be denied or paid less?
These come from CMS indicators on this page, not general billing advice.
- Bilateral surgery: no bilateral adjustment. See billing policy
- Assistant at surgery: restricted without documentation. See billing policy
- Co-surgeons: not permitted. See billing policy
- Team surgery: not permitted. See billing policy
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.
CMS RVU23DOctober 1 – December 31, 2023 See file rows
Can you bill it with another code? Copy link
Payment review for 80503 Copy link
What to check (3)
Two published payment rules can change what 80503 allows on a claim: the office/facility differential and documentation-restricted assistant-at-surgery payment. Each is a legitimate reason for a paid amount to differ from the fee-schedule amount on this page.
- Check the place-of-service code before attributing the gap to the payer: office and facility pricing differ by $5.08 nationally at GPCI 1.000, before any locality adjustment.
- Check for documentation on file before appealing an assistant-at-surgery denial: payment on the -80 or -AS line is restricted for this procedure unless medical necessity is established.
- 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.
Sources: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files; CMS Practice Expense methodology (cms.gov); 42 USC 1395w-4(i)(2) (SSA §1848(i)(2))—Assistants-at-surgery.
How location and RVUs set the amount Copy link
Office (non-facility): 0.80 RVUs × $33.8872 = $27.11 national PFS baseline. Local GPCIs move it from $25.02 in Arkansas, AR to $35.31 in Alaska, AK.
Office (non-facility)
| Component | RVU | × GPCI | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work | 0.43 | 1.000 | 0.43 |
| Practice expense | 0.35 | 1.000 | 0.35 |
| Malpractice | 0.02 | 1.000 | 0.02 |
| Total RVUs | 0.80 | ||
| × Conversion factor | $33.8872 | ||
| = National PFS baseline | $27.11 | ||
Facility
| Component | RVU | × GPCI | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work | 0.43 | 1.000 | 0.43 |
| Practice expense | 0.20 | 1.000 | 0.20 |
| Malpractice | 0.02 | 1.000 | 0.02 |
| Total RVUs | 0.65 | ||
| × Conversion factor | $33.8872 | ||
| = National PFS baseline | $22.03 | ||
Rates by locality Copy link
80503 Office (non-facility) by metro, highest first
Show 56 more metros Show fewer metros
80503 Facility by metro, highest first
Show 56 more metros Show fewer metros
Q4 2023, each locality's GPCIs, before sequestration. Multi-locality states are shaded by their mean. Look up your exact locality →
CMS RVU23DOctober 1 – December 31, 2023 See file rows
Source & method Copy link
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01 PPRRVU23_OCT.csv · Q4 2023 (RVU23D) · row 14,827—status A, RVUs limits
- Effective
- October 1 – December 31, 2023
- Locator
- PPRRVU23_OCT.csv in rvu23d.zip · row 14,827 of 18,168 · via CMS
- Fields read
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Status A (col 4) Work RVU 0.43 (col 6) Office (non-facility) PE RVU 0.35 (col 7) Facility PE RVU 0.2 (col 9) Malpractice RVU 0.02 (col 11)SHA-256 6558dc4fa634f462…
- Doesn’t establish
- A locality-adjusted allowed amount, or the payment after sequestration. National baselines use GPCI 1.000 and exclude sequestration.
- Note
- Whether a national amount exists depends on the status and CMS’s payment instructions; blank RVUs are never treated as zero.
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02 Conversion factor · same file · row 14,827 · column 25—$33.8872
- Source
- Conversion factor, read from the same file as the RVUs
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03 Physician & Other Practitioners · CY2024—volume and who bills it limits
- Effective
- Calendar-year snapshot, on a different cycle from the Q4 2023 fee schedule
- Doesn’t establish
- Medicare Advantage, Medicaid or commercial volume.
- Note
- The dataset suppresses rows under 11 beneficiaries.
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04 Derived Modifier amounts—calculated by Localis from standard MPFS percentages limits
- Source
- Modifier amounts apply standard MPFS percentages to this code’s billing indicators.
- Doesn’t establish
- A CMS-published amount: we derive these rather than read them from CMS. Confirm them against the current Claims Processing Manual before relying on them for payment.
Cite this rate
CPT 80503 National PFS baseline: Office (non-facility) $27.11; Facility $22.03 (Q4 2023; participating physician; whole service; GPCI 1.000; sequestration excluded). CMS RVU23D, PPRRVU23_OCT.csv row 14,827. Localis. https://localishealth.com/cpt/80503/2023/D
Past releases are never edited, so the citation stays checkable after CMS publishes a newer one. Methodology · Plain-text summary · JSON
How has it changed? Copy link
$26.39 Office (non-facility) and $18.37 Facility since Jan 1, 2026, after a +0.7% increase in the Office (non-facility) amount. -1.0% decrease since Q1 2022; peak $27.11 in Q1 2023.
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Jan 1, 2026 – present
Q1 2026
Still in effect · 4 releases at this rate- Office
- $26.39 (+$0.19, +0.7% increase)
- Facility
- $18.37 (−$2.66, -12.6% decrease)
Q1 2026 Jan 1, 2026 – Mar 31, 2026 · Q2 2026 Apr 1, 2026 – Jun 30, 2026 · Q3 2026 Jul 1, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026 · Q4 2026 Oct 1, 2026 – present
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Jan 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2025
Q1 2025
4 releases at this rate- Office
- $26.20 (−$0.43, -1.6% decrease)
- Facility
- $21.03 (−$0.61, -2.8% decrease)
Q1 2025 Jan 1, 2025 – Mar 31, 2025 · Q2 2025 Apr 1, 2025 – Jun 30, 2025 · Q3 2025 Jul 1, 2025 – Sep 30, 2025 · Q4 2025 Oct 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2025
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Mar 9, 2024 – Dec 31, 2024
Q1 2024
4 releases at this rate- Office
- $26.63 (+$0.43, +1.6% increase)
- Facility
- $21.64 (+$0.36, +1.7% increase)
Q1 2024 Mar 9, 2024 – Mar 31, 2024 · Q2 2024 Apr 1, 2024 – Jun 30, 2024 · Q3 2024 Jul 1, 2024 – Sep 30, 2024 · Q4 2024 Oct 1, 2024 – Dec 31, 2024
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Jan 1, 2024 – Mar 8, 2024 · Superseded revision
Q1 2024 rev 1
Revision 1, later corrected by CMS- Office
- $26.20
- Facility
- $21.28
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Jan 1, 2023 – Dec 31, 2023
Q1 2023
4 releases at this rate- Office
- $27.11 (+$0.46, +1.7% increase)
- Facility
- $22.03 (−$0.46, -2.0% decrease)
Q1 2023 Jan 1, 2023 – Mar 31, 2023 · Q2 2023 Apr 1, 2023 – Jun 30, 2023 · Q3 2023 Jul 1, 2023 – Sep 30, 2023 · Q4 2023 Oct 1, 2023 – Dec 31, 2023
- +$1.01 practice-expense RVUs
- −$0.55 the conversion factor
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Jan 1, 2022 – Dec 31, 2022
Q1 2022
4 releases at this rate- Office
- $26.65
- Facility
- $22.49
Q1 2022 Jan 1, 2022 – Mar 31, 2022 · Q2 2022 Apr 1, 2022 – Jun 30, 2022 · Q3 2022 Jul 1, 2022 – Sep 30, 2022 · Q4 2022 Oct 1, 2022 – Dec 31, 2022
Earliest release in this history.
National baseline (GPCI 1.000), before sequestration.
How each change is split
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.
The 80503 rate last moved in Q1 2026. See its rate history.
Sources: CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value Files.
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Usage and related codes Copy link
In CY2024, 80503 ranked #1,876 of the 7,879 CPT codes billed to Medicare that year, by patients served or total allowed dollars.
- Services
- 23,758
- Allowed
- $532,461
- Beneficiaries
- 19,148
CY2024 Medicare fee-for-service, from the CMS Physician & Other Practitioners dataset (limits).