CPT code 15574: Pedicle flap, face, neck, hands, feet, other sites2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $875.44 for 15574 nationally in the office and $639.63 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $783.54–$1,100.42.

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

What 15574 covers

A surgeon forms a skin flap that stays attached to its blood supply while it is brought toward a defect, either directly or as a tubed pedicle. This reconstruction may follow trauma, burn injury, or tissue removal, and is used for defects involving the forehead, cheeks, chin, mouth, neck, axillae, genitalia, hands, or feet. Plastic and reconstructive surgeons typically perform the procedure in an operating room.

Select this code when the documented flap and operative site fit the listed anatomic group; nearby flap codes divide other body regions into separate groups. The operative report should describe the flap design, the relevant anatomy, and the formation or transfer performed. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment is statutorily restricted, and 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 15574 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

15574 rates by state

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

How the 15574 rate is calculated

Each of 15574’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 15574

15574 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

15574 compared with similar codes

How to choose

15572Skin flapArm or leg

Choose 15572 when the flap involves the arms or legs; 15574 covers its specified facial, neck, axillary, genital, hand, and foot sites.

15576Pedicle flapNose, ears, eyelids, or lips

15576 is for eyelids, nose, ears, or lips. Use 15574 for the other listed sites, such as the forehead, cheeks, chin, mouth, or neck.

14040Tissue rearrangementDefined sites, 10 cm² or less

14040 describes adjacent tissue transfer or rearrangement for specified sites by area. 15574 describes formation of a direct or tubed pedicle flap for its listed sites.

Codes related to 15574

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