CPT code 12015: Simple wound repair, face and related sites, 7.6-12.5 cm2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $210.76 for 12015 nationally in the office and $90.18 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $185.08–$269.20.

Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.

What 12015 covers

This service covers straightforward closure of superficial wounds in the face, ears, eyelids, nose, lips, or mucous membranes, when the total repaired length is 7.6 to 12.5 cm. A physician or other qualified clinician commonly performs it in an office, emergency department, or other acute-care setting. A typical situation is closure of a superficial facial laceration that needs a simple, rather than layered, repair.

Select the code by the wound’s anatomic group, repair complexity, and total repaired length. The record should identify the wound site, describe the simple closure, and support the length reported. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, including same-day preoperative and postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple procedure reduction. Bilateral adjustment is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment is statutorily restricted, and co-surgery and team surgery are not permitted.

This summary was written with AI assistance from CMS physician fee schedule data and checked against the CMS billing rules shown here. Rates on this page come directly from CMS files.

Where 12015 pays more and less

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

109 of 109 payment localities

12015 rates by state

Office rate range in each state. Select a state to see its payment localities.

How the 12015 rate is calculated

Each of 12015’s three RVUs is multiplied by a geographic index (GPCI) for the payment locality, added up, and multiplied by the conversion factor. Drag the indexes or enter a ZIP to see what moves the rate.

Payment rules and modifiers for 12015

The CMS indicators that decide how 12015 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

12015 compared with similar codes

How to choose

12014Wound repairFacial sites, 5.1–7.5 cm

Both cover simple repair in the same anatomic group. Choose 12014 when the total repaired length falls in its shorter range; choose 12015 for 7.6 to 12.5 cm.

12016Simple wound repairFace group, 12.6–20 cm

This is the next longer length range for simple repair of the same anatomic group. The repaired length, not wound severity alone, distinguishes it from 12015.

12004Simple wound repairNonfacial sites, 7.6–12.5 cm

This covers simple repair of a different anatomic group, including the trunk and other listed sites. Use 12015 for the face, ears, eyelids, nose, lips, or mucous membranes.

12051Facial repairIntermediate, 2.5 cm or less

This is for intermediate repair in the face and related-site group. Choose based on repair complexity: a layered intermediate repair is not the simple closure represented by 12015.

Codes related to 12015

Related codes aren’t interchangeable: bill the code that matches the service performed.

Where these rates come from

FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indexes and the conversion factor. Services without a published rate are labeled, never given a made-up amount. Amounts are Medicare allowed amounts before claim adjustments: not a patient’s bill or a commercial rate.

CMS RVU26D · effective Oct 1, 2026 through the day before Jan 1, 2027

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates