CPT code 14021: Tissue transfer, scalp, arms, or legs2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $882.79 for 14021 nationally in the office and $620.25 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $787.91–$1,128.21.

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

What 14021 covers

A surgeon mobilizes nearby skin and tissue to close a defect on the scalp, arm, or leg, using techniques such as a rotation, advancement, or transposition flap. This reconstruction is common after removal of a skin cancer or another lesion leaves a defect that cannot be closed directly. Plastic surgeons, dermatologic surgeons, and other surgeons may perform it in an office procedure room or operating room. The procedure includes the work of transferring and rearranging the adjacent tissue.

Select this code when the total defect area is 10.1 through 30 square centimeters. Measure the primary defect and any secondary defect created by the tissue movement; document the dimensions and flap technique in the operative note. The lesion excision and closure of the secondary defect are included, so do not separately report lesion removal or a simple repair for that work. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in one session, the highest-valued is paid in full and others at 50%. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this code; 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 14021 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

14021 rates by state

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

How the 14021 rate is calculated

Each of 14021’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 14021

14021 has a 90-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

14021 compared with similar codes

How to choose

14020Tissue rearrangementScalp, arm, or leg; up to 10 sq cm

Both codes cover adjacent tissue transfer on the scalp, arms, or legs. Choose 14020 for defects of 10 square centimeters or less; 14021 is for 10.1 through 30 square centimeters.

14001Tissue transferTrunk, 10.1–30 cm²

The area range is the same, but 14001 is for trunk defects. Use 14021 for defects on the scalp, arms, or legs.

14041Tissue rearrangement10.1–30 sq cm, specified sites

The area range is the same, but 14041 covers specified face, ear, eyelid, nose, lip, or mucous membrane sites rather than the scalp, arms, or legs.

14301Tissue transfer30.1–60 square centimeters

Use 14301 for an adjacent tissue transfer defect measuring 30.1 through 60 square centimeters. Code 14021 is limited to 10.1 through 30 square centimeters at its specified sites.

Codes related to 14021

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