Why it exists Copy link
Staff wages, office rent, and malpractice premiums vary widely across the country. The GPCIs adjust the national RVUs for those relative cost differences. A GPCI above 1.000 raises its component; one below 1.000 lowers it. The work GPCI is deliberately damped: by statute it reflects only one quarter of the measured geographic difference in physician work costs.
Three indexes, three components Copy link
The work GPCI adjusts the work RVU, the practice expense GPCI adjusts the PE RVU, and the malpractice GPCI adjusts the MP RVU. Each locality has its own set of three, so the same code pays different amounts in different localities.
The national baseline Copy link
A GPCI of 1.000 is the national average. National amounts—the default on our code pages—apply 1.000 to all three components. That shows what the RVUs and conversion factor produce before any locality adjustment. The locality directory lists every locality's three GPCIs.
Find a ZIP’s payment locality and GPCIs Copy link
Enter the ZIP where the service was performed. A ZIP that spans localities is named as split, never placed in one.
Try , , ,
ZIP 60657 · Q4 2026 release
ZIP 60657 is in the Chicago payment locality (MAC 06102, locality 16).
- Work GPCI
- 1.007
- Practice expense GPCI
- 1.005
- Malpractice GPCI
- 2.295
See Chicago’s amounts and ZIPs
Each GPCI multiplies its RVU before the conversion factor; 1.000 is the national baseline. The work GPCI shown is the one CMS pays with, floor included.
Frequently asked Copy link
How many GPCIs apply to a payment?
Three: work, practice expense, and malpractice. Each locality has its own set, and each GPCI adjusts its matching RVU component.
What does a GPCI of 1.000 mean?
It is the national average: no local adjustment up or down. National amounts use 1.000 for all three indexes.
Sources Copy link
Written from primary CMS sources—see how we source, compute, and verify everything on this site.
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