CPT code 31525: Laryngoscopy, diagnostic, except newborn2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Alabama

In Alabama, Medicare pays $226.54 for 31525 in the office and $127.18 when it’s performed in a hospital or facility.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 31525 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 31525 covers

An otolaryngologist uses a laryngoscope to directly inspect the larynx and, when needed, the trachea. The examination can help assess hoarseness, suspected vocal-fold abnormalities, or other laryngeal findings that need direct visualization. It is commonly performed in a hospital or ambulatory surgical setting, often with anesthesia, although the clinical setting depends on the patient and examination plan.

Report this code for a diagnostic direct examination in a patient who is not a newborn. The operative note should identify the indication, the structures examined, and whether tracheoscopy was performed. When the same session includes a separately coded operative laryngeal service, report the code describing that work rather than separately reporting the diagnostic examination. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate; assistant-at-surgery payment is restricted, and co-surgeon and team-surgery billing 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 Alabama compares for 31525

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for 31525 runs from $223.45 in Arkansas to $322.31 in San Benito County, CA. Alabama pays $226.54. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

31525 rates by state

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

See 31525 in every payment locality

How the 31525 rate is calculated

Each of 31525’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 31525

The CMS indicators that decide how 31525 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

Codes related to 31525

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

How 31525 has changed in Alabama

Price 31525 for an earlier date of service

Where the Alabama rate applies

Alabama is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 595 cities and communities in Alabama. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Abanda
• Abbeville
• Adamsville
• Addison
• Akron
• Alabaster
• Albertville
• Alexander City

Browse all communities in Alabama

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