CPT code 26531: Knuckle arthroplasty, with implant2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Nevada

In Nevada, Medicare pays $580.15 for 26531 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 26531 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 26531 covers

A hand surgeon removes damaged joint surfaces at a metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint and places an implant to improve alignment and preserve motion. Typical cases include painful MCP destruction and deformity from rheumatoid arthritis, or joint damage from other causes. The procedure is generally performed in an operating room, with the specific finger and joint identified in the operative report.

Report this code when the operation includes an implant at the MCP joint; distinguish it from MCP arthroplasty without an implant and implant arthroplasty at a finger interphalangeal joint. Documentation should establish the treated joint, the underlying problem, and implant placement. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care during that period. When multiple procedures are performed in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is 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 Nevada compares for 26531

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 26531 runs from $525.48 in Arkansas to $716.06 in Alaska. Nevada pays $580.15. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

26531 rates by state

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

See 26531 in every payment locality

How the 26531 rate is calculated

Each of 26531’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 26531

26531 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 26531

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

How 26531 has changed in Nevada

Price 26531 for an earlier date of service

Where the Nevada rate applies

Nevada is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 138 cities and communities in Nevada. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Alamo
• Amargosa Valley
• Austin
• Baker
• Battle Mountain
• Beatty
• Beaverdam
• Bennett Springs

Browse all communities in Nevada

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