CPT code 28192: Foot foreign body removal, deep foreign body2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $456.92 for 28192 nationally in the office and $293.59 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $409.16–$593.29.

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

What 28192 covers

A podiatrist or orthopedic surgeon reports 28192 when an incision and deeper dissection are needed to locate and remove a foreign object embedded in the foot. A deeply lodged piece of glass in the plantar foot is a typical example. The operative note should identify the foot and site, describe the object’s depth and the dissection used to reach it, and document its removal.

Choose this code for a deep foot foreign body rather than a superficial one or a complicated removal. The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, CMS pays the highest-valued procedure in full and the others at 50%. For bilateral reporting with modifier 50, CMS pays 150%. Assistant-at-surgery services are not 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.

Where 28192 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

28192 rates by state

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

How the 28192 rate is calculated

Each of 28192’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 28192

28192 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

28192 compared with similar codes

How to choose

28190Foot foreign body removalSubcutaneous foreign body

Choose 28190 for a subcutaneous foreign body in the foot. Choose 28192 when the object is embedded deeply and deeper dissection is required.

28193Foreign body removalComplicated foot removal

28193 describes complicated foot foreign body removal. Depth alone supports 28192; documentation should establish when the removal is complicated.

10121Foreign body removalComplicated subcutaneous

10121 is for complicated subcutaneous foreign body removal outside the foot-specific code family. For a deeply embedded object in the foot, consider 28192.

28020Foot joint arthrotomyIntertarsal or tarsometatarsal

28020 applies when removal is performed through arthrotomy at a foot interphalangeal joint. 28192 describes deep foreign body removal from the foot rather than that joint-specific approach.

Codes related to 28192

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