CPT code 20704: Drug device placement, intra-articular preparation and insertion2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $171.73 for 20704 in the office and $139.86 when it’s performed in a hospital or facility.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 20704 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 20704 covers

An orthopedic surgeon reports 20704 when manually preparing a drug-delivery device and placing it inside a joint during operative treatment. A common situation is staged management of an infected joint, with antibiotic mixed into cement and formed as an intra-articular spacer or beads. The work is performed in the operating room as part of the joint procedure; this code identifies device preparation and placement, not the underlying debridement, revision, or other primary operation.

Report 20704 only with a primary procedure; it is an add-on and is not submitted by itself. The operative note should identify the joint, describe manual preparation of the drug-delivery device and its intra-articular placement, and support the associated primary procedure. CMS places payment for this add-on within the primary procedure's global period. Select this code by the device's final location: placement in the joint, rather than deep soft tissue or the intramedullary canal, distinguishes it from neighboring insertion codes.

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 20704

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for 20704 runs from $139.80 in Arkansas to $193.91 in Alaska. Washington, DC area pays $171.73. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

20704 rates by state

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

See 20704 in every payment locality

How the 20704 rate is calculated

Each of 20704’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 20704

The CMS indicators that decide how 20704 is paid alongside other services.

Codes related to 20704

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

How 20704 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 20704 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.

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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