CPT code 27430: Quadricepsplasty, quadriceps contracture release2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 27430 in California.

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

What 27430 covers

A quadricepsplasty releases or lengthens a shortened quadriceps mechanism that is restricting knee flexion. Orthopedic surgeons commonly perform it for persistent stiffness after trauma, such as a distal femur fracture, when scarred or contracted thigh muscle limits motion. It is an open operative treatment, generally performed in a hospital or ambulatory surgical setting, rather than a manipulation or ligament reconstruction.

Report 27430 when the operative work is quadricepsplasty; the operative note should identify the contracture, its effect on knee motion, and the muscle release or lengthening 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 others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; 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.

Where 27430 pays more and less in California

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

29 of 29 payment localities

How the 27430 rate is calculated

Each of 27430’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 27430

27430 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 50

27430 compared with similar codes

How to choose

27570Knee manipulationUnder anesthesia

Use 27570 for manipulation of a stiff knee under anesthesia. Use 27430 when the surgeon releases or lengthens contracted quadriceps muscle.

27435Knee capsulotomyPosterior release

Code 27435 describes release involving the knee capsule; 27430 concerns quadriceps muscle contracture limiting knee flexion.

27427Knee reconstructionExtra-articular ligament

Code 27427 is for extra-articular knee ligament reconstruction to address instability. It does not describe quadriceps release for restricted flexion.

Codes related to 27430

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