CPT code 26479: Tendon shortening, hand or finger extensor2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Virginia

In Virginia, Medicare pays $656.43 for 26479 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 26479 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 26479 covers

A hand surgeon shortens an extensor tendon in the hand or finger to correct excessive tendon length and improve tendon tension or motion. The operation may be selected when the documented problem is addressed by shortening the tendon itself, rather than by releasing it, lengthening it, or changing its position. The operative report should identify the treated tendon and hand or finger, describe the shortening performed, and connect the procedure to the functional problem being treated.

Report the service for each tendon shortened, with documentation supporting the tendon and procedure performed. CMS assigns 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% multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. An assistant at surgery may be paid; 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 Virginia compares for 26479

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 26479 runs from $593.71 in Arkansas to $873.75 in San Benito County, CA. Virginia pays $656.43. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

26479 rates by state

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

See 26479 in every payment locality

How the 26479 rate is calculated

Each of 26479’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 26479

26479 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 26479

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

How 26479 has changed in Virginia

Price 26479 for an earlier date of service

Where the Virginia rate applies

Virginia is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 628 cities and communities in Virginia. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Abbs Valley
• Abingdon
• Accomac
• Adwolf
• Afton
• Alberta
• Aldie
• Allison Gap

Browse all communities in Virginia

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