CPT code 12046: Intermediate repair, 20.1–30 cm, specified sites2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $557.13 for 12046 nationally in the office and $313.30 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $485.44–$723.02.

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

What 12046 covers

This code describes intermediate repair of one or more wounds on the neck, hands, feet, or external genitalia, when their reportable lengths total 20.1–30 cm. The closure includes repair of deeper tissue, such as subcutaneous tissue or superficial fascia, as well as skin. Physicians and other qualified practitioners may perform these repairs in settings such as an emergency department or operating room, often after trauma or excision leaves a wound requiring layered closure.

Select the code from the documented repair complexity, anatomical grouping, and total repaired length. Record each wound’s location and length and the layers closed; combine lengths only as permitted within the applicable repair group. This code has a 10-day global period, including related postoperative visits during that period. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; co-surgeons 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 12046 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

12046 rates by state

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

How the 12046 rate is calculated

Each of 12046’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 12046

12046 has a 10-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

12046 compared with similar codes

How to choose

12045Intermediate wound repairNeck, hands, feet, or genitalia

Use 12045 for the same anatomical grouping and repair type when the total length falls in its shorter band; 12046 requires 20.1–30 cm.

12047Intermediate repairNeck, hands, feet, genitalia; over 30 cm

Use 12047 for the same anatomical grouping and repair type when total length exceeds 30 cm; 12046 is for 20.1–30 cm.

12036Wound repairIntermediate, 20.1–30 cm

Both represent intermediate repair in the 20.1–30 cm band, but 12036 applies to a different anatomical grouping.

12056Wound repairFace, 20.1–30 cm

Use 12056 for intermediate repair of the face or mucous membranes in this length band; 12046 is for the neck, hands, feet, or external genitalia.

Codes related to 12046

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