CPT code 20525: Foreign body removal, deep or complicated2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $497.01 for 20525 nationally in the office and $233.14 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $435.59–$658.45.

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

What 20525 covers

This service covers surgical retrieval of an object embedded in muscle or tendon, such as a deeply lodged splinter or fragment. A physician makes the necessary exposure and dissection to locate and remove it. The procedure may be performed in an office procedure room, emergency setting, or operating room, depending on the object’s location and the difficulty of access.

Choose this code when the object is deep in muscle or tendon, or its removal is complicated; document the anatomic site, depth, and work needed to retrieve it. Use 20520 for a simple removal from muscle or tendon, and consider the subcutaneous foreign-body codes when the object remains in that tissue layer. The 10-day global period includes related postoperative visits during those 10 days. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery, and co-surgeon and team-surgery billing 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 20525 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

20525 rates by state

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

How the 20525 rate is calculated

Each of 20525’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 20525

20525 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

20525 compared with similar codes

How to choose

20520Foreign body removalMuscle or tendon, simple

Both address foreign-body removal from muscle or tendon. Choose 20525 for deep or complicated retrieval and 20520 for simple removal.

10120Foreign body removalSimple subcutaneous extraction

10120 is for simple removal from subcutaneous tissue. Use 20525 when the object is embedded in muscle or tendon and removal is deep or complicated.

10121Foreign body removalComplicated subcutaneous

10121 describes complicated removal from subcutaneous tissue. The tissue layer distinguishes it from deep or complicated removal from muscle or tendon under 20525.

Codes related to 20525

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