CPT code 15838: Fat pad excision, under-chin adipose tissue2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $670.15 for 15838 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 15838 nationwide

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

What 15838 covers

A surgeon removes excess adipose tissue in the submental region beneath the chin. Plastic and facial plastic surgeons commonly perform this contouring procedure in an outpatient operating room or hospital setting, sometimes as part of a broader neck or lower-face operation. The service is directed at the submental fat pad rather than excess skin elsewhere on the body or a general neck-lift procedure.

Report the code when the operative work removes the submental fat pad; documentation should identify the treated site, the excess tissue addressed, and the procedure performed. The code has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. 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.

How Washington, DC area compares for 15838

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 15838 runs from $536.16 in Arkansas to $731.08 in San Benito County, CA. Washington, DC area pays $670.15. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

15838 rates by state

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

See 15838 in every payment locality

How the 15838 rate is calculated

Each of 15838’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 15838

15838 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

Codes related to 15838

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

How 15838 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 15838 for an earlier date of service

Where the Washington, DC area rate applies

Washington, DC area is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 1 cities and communities in District of Columbia. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Washington

Browse all communities in District of Columbia

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