CPT code 15150: Cultured skin graft, trunk, arms, or legs2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California
Reports placement of cultured autologous skin on the trunk or limbs for the initial grafted area, commonly in treatment of extensive burns or wounds.
Medicare pays $766.66–$925.01 for 15150 in the office in California, from Chico, CA to San Benito County, CA. Which amount applies depends on the service address.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
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On this page 9 sections
What 15150 covers
This code represents placement of a patient’s cultured skin cells as a graft on the trunk, arms, or legs. It is used for the initial grafted area: up to 100 sq cm, or the corresponding body-surface-area measure for infants and children. Burn and reconstructive surgeons may use this approach for extensive burns or other large wounds when cultured autologous skin is selected. The service includes the graft application, not simply harvesting a skin sample to begin cell culture.
Select the code based on the recipient site and the area treated, and document the grafted area or the applicable pediatric body-surface-area measure. Additional area is reported with the corresponding add-on code, 15151 or 15152, according to the applicable measurement basis. This major surgery has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Modifier 50 is not appropriate. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this service; 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 15150 pays more and less in California
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
29 payment localities
$766.66 to $925.01
29 of 29 payment localities
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Bakersfield, CA | $773.27 | $612.93 |
| Chico, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| El Centro, CA | $767.07 | $606.73 |
| Fresno, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Hanford, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $817.18 | $644.12 |
| Madera, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Marin County, CA | $902.08 | $695.81 |
| Merced, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Modesto, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Napa, CA | $861.78 | $668.96 |
| Oxnard, CA | $809.46 | $636.54 |
| Redding, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Rest of California | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Riverside, CA | $793.01 | $632.67 |
| Sacramento, CA | $797.63 | $627.49 |
| Salinas, CA | $794.60 | $625.04 |
| San Benito County, CA | $925.01 | $714.05 |
| San Diego, CA | $808.67 | $633.70 |
| San Francisco, CA | $899.29 | $693.01 |
| San Luis Obispo, CA | $782.80 | $616.17 |
| Santa Clara County, CA | $913.59 | $702.63 |
| Santa Cruz, CA | $812.56 | $634.81 |
| Santa Maria, CA | $796.31 | $625.73 |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $820.20 | $640.54 |
| Stockton, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Vallejo, CA | $857.75 | $664.94 |
| Visalia, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
| Yuba City, CA | $766.66 | $606.32 |
How the 15150 rate is calculated
Each of 15150’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.
How the rate is built · 15150
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work9.16
9.16 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense11.24
11.24 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice2.46
2.46 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
22.8600
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$763.54
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 15150
15150 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.
CMS payment indicators · 15150
Cultured skin graft, trunk, arms, or legs
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 090 | Major surgery: the day before, the day of, and 90 days after are included. |
| Multiple procedures | 2 | Standard reduction: highest-valued procedure at 100%, others at 50%. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 1 | Not paid (statutory restriction). |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
| Split (54/55/56) | 0.10/0.71/0.19 | Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care. |
Global surgery period · 15150
Cultured skin graft, trunk, arms, or legs
90-day global period ends
Dec 30, 2026
Covers Sep 30, 2026 through Dec 30, 2026 (92 days, including the day before surgery).
Visit on Oct 31, 2026
Day 30 of the 90-day post-op period: related follow-up care is included in the surgical payment.
Pre-op dayGlobal period
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 51 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
15150 without 51 · national office
$763.54
Cultured skin graft, trunk, arms, or legs
15150-51 · Second procedure: 50%
$381.77
When this isn’t the highest-valued procedure in the session, Medicare pays 50% of its fee schedule amount (the highest is paid at 100%).
15150 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
5 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 15100Skin graftTrunk, arms, or legs
- 15100 is for a split-thickness autograft. Use 15150 when cultured autologous skin is applied to the trunk, arms, or legs.
- 15110Epidermal graftTrunk, arms, or legs
- 15110 represents an epidermal autograft, not a cultured skin autograft. The graft method determines which code applies.
- 15130Dermal autograftTrunk, arms, or legs
- 15130 represents a dermal autograft. It is not the code for placement of cultured autologous skin.
- 15155Cultured allograftFace and other special sites
- Both codes describe cultured skin grafting, but 15155 is for specified head, hand, foot, and genital sites; 15150 is for the trunk and limbs.
15150 billing questions
How is 15150 different from 15155?
15150 is for the trunk, arms, or legs. 15155 is the corresponding initial-area cultured skin graft code for the face, scalp, neck, hands, feet, or genitalia.
When should 15151 or 15152 be reported with 15150?
Use the applicable add-on code for grafted area beyond the initial area. The choice depends on whether the additional area is measured in 100-sq-cm units or by the pediatric body-surface-area measure.
Can a split-thickness graft code be reported instead?
No, not for the same cultured skin graft service. Code 15100 describes a different graft method; select the code that reflects the technique actually performed.
What documentation supports 15150?
Document the recipient site, cultured autologous graft application, and area treated. For an infant or child, document the body-surface-area measure used to select the code.
Can an assistant surgeon or co-surgeon be billed?
Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for 15150, and co-surgeons are not permitted for this code.
Does the 90-day global period include postoperative care?
Yes. Related postoperative care for 90 days and the day-before preoperative visit are included in the global period.
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
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