Medicare payment locality · Q4 2026 release

New Orleans LA Medicare Locality 01

MAC 07202 · Locality 01

This locality's GPCIs are mixed, so the net payment effect varies by code for the Q4 2026 Physician Fee Schedule. For nationally priced services, Medicare adjusts each code's work, practice-expense, and malpractice RVUs using these indexes.

Work GPCI

1.000

Adjusts the physician-work component for professional labor costs

Practice expense GPCI

0.941

Adjusts practice-expense inputs such as staff, rent, and services

Malpractice GPCI

1.136

Adjusts the malpractice component using liability-cost data

1.000 is the national baseline. A value above 1.000 raises that component; below 1.000 lowers it. GPCIs are Medicare payment factors, not general cost-of-living or physician-compensation indexes.

Example rates in New Orleans Copy link

National and New Orleans Office (non-facility) amounts for frequently reviewed codes in the Q4 2026 release (before sequestration). Conversion factor: 2026 standard (non-QP) physician conversion factor · $33.4009.

Code	National	New Orleans	Difference
99214	$135.61	$132.30	-2.4%
99213	$95.19	$92.72	-2.6%
99215	$192.39	$187.92	-2.3%
66984	$462.60	$452.96	-2.1%
99204	$177.36	$173.58	-2.1%
92014	$127.26	$122.81	-3.5%
97110	$29.06	$28.30	-2.6%
88305	$70.14	$67.57	-3.7%
97530	$35.07	$33.93	-3.3%
99203	$117.57	$114.83	-2.3%

Need a specific code or the facility amount? Use the rate calculator and choose this locality. Or start with your field's usual procedure mix on the specialty fee schedules.

ZIP codes in this locality Copy link

New Orleans covers 110 ZIP codes across LA, per the CMS ZIP-to-locality crosswalk (Q4 2026).

70001 70002 70003 70004 70005 70006 70009 70010 70011 70032 70033 70036 70037 70038 70040 70041 70042 70043 70044 70046 70050 70053 70054 70055 70056 70058 70059 70060 70062 70063 70064 70065 70067 70072 70073 70075 70081 70082 70083 70085 70091 70092 70093 70094 70096 70097 70112 70113 70114 70115 70116 70117 70118 70119 70121 70122 70123 70124 70125 70126 70127 70128 70129 70130 70131 70139 70140 70141 70142 70143 70145 70146 70148 70149 70150 70151 70152 70153 70154 70156 70157 70158 70159 70160 70161 70162 70163 70164 70165 70166 70167 70170 70172 70174 70175 70176 70177 70178 70179 70181 70182 70183 70184 70185 70186 70187 70189 70190 70195 70358

Not sure which locality your ZIP is in? Look it up by ZIP code.

Common questions Copy link

Why do Medicare rates in New Orleans differ from the national amount?

For nationally priced Physician Fee Schedule services, Medicare adjusts each code's work, practice-expense, and malpractice RVUs by this locality's three GPCIs before applying the conversion factor. Local costs for physician work, running an office, and liability insurance therefore move the final amount up or down. New Orleans currently has mixed GPCI components, so the net payment effect varies by code for the Q4 2026 release.

How do I know if my address is in this locality?

Medicare payment localities are geographic fee-schedule areas, commonly defined with county boundaries. CMS uses the ZIP code where the service was performed to assign a claim to its contractor and locality. Look up your ZIP to find your locality. A few ZIPs nationally span multiple localities and need ZIP+4 to resolve exactly.

Do commercial insurers or Medicare Advantage plans use this locality?

Original Medicare uses these PFS localities directly. Commercial and Medicare Advantage plans are not required to use the same locality structure. A contract may pay a percentage of Medicare, but its own wording decides which Medicare release, percentage, geography, and adjustments apply.

Does my locality affect what I owe as a patient?

For a covered service, a higher allowed amount in your locality usually means a higher 20% coinsurance. The effect depends on the code, the beneficiary's deductible, supplemental coverage, and other claim circumstances.

Why did my Medicare payment change even though I didn't change what I billed?

CMS publishes updated PFS files during the year. A code's amount can change because of conversion-factor, RVU, policy, or correction updates. GPCIs are usually set once a year in the fee schedule rule, though later files can correct them. See what changed each release.

Source & method Copy link

We compute GPCIs and rates from the CMS Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Q4 2026 release (effective October 2026). ZIP coverage from the CMS ZIP-to-locality crosswalk, Q4 2026 release. Example amounts use the standard (non-QP) physician conversion factor ($33.4009) and apply this locality's GPCIs to nationally priced Office (non-facility) RVUs, before the ~2% sequestration cut. Past releases are never edited, so a rate for an earlier quarter always matches what CMS published for it.

Geographic practice cost indices (Q4 2026) · rvu26d-updated-08-26-2026.zip (GPCI2026.csv row 56)

ZIP code to carrier locality crosswalk (Q4 2026) · zip-code-carrier-locality-file-updated-08-13-2026.zip (ZIP5_OCT2026.txt)

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