CPT code 29837: Elbow arthroscopy, limited debridement2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $565.45 for 29837 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 29837 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 29837 covers

An orthopedic surgeon uses an arthroscope and instruments through small portals to remove a limited amount of damaged tissue from inside the elbow joint. The work may address a focal area of unstable articular cartilage or synovial tissue. This is a therapeutic procedure, commonly performed in an operating room or ambulatory surgery center for a patient with symptomatic elbow-joint pathology; it is distinct from simply inspecting the joint or removing a loose body.

Select this code when the operative report supports limited debridement, rather than extensive debridement or a separately defined procedure such as synovectomy. Document the treated tissue, location, and extent of work. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When related endoscopies are performed together, endoscopy family pricing applies. For bilateral procedures, modifier 50 is paid at 150%. An assistant at surgery may be paid; 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 Washington, DC area compares for 29837

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 29837 runs from $450.75 in Arkansas to $613.97 in Alaska. Washington, DC area pays $565.45. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

29837 rates by state

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

See 29837 in every payment locality

How the 29837 rate is calculated

Each of 29837’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 29837

29837 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

Codes related to 29837

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

How 29837 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 29837 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.

• Washington

Browse all communities in District of Columbia

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