CPT code 31638: Airway stent revision, tracheal or bronchial stent2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Maryland
Bronchoscopic revision adjusts a previously placed tracheal or bronchial stent when its position or function needs correction.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 31638 in Maryland.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
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What 31638 covers
A pulmonologist or thoracic surgeon uses a bronchoscope to revise a stent already placed in the trachea or a bronchus. The service may be needed when a stent has migrated or no longer maintains the intended airway position or patency. It is commonly performed in a hospital procedural or operating-room setting. The key distinction is revision of an existing airway stent, rather than initial stent placement or airway dilation alone.
Report the service when the procedure note identifies the existing stent, its airway location, the reason for revision, and the work performed. The code has a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When related endoscopies are performed together, CMS endoscopy-family pricing applies rather than treating each as an independent full procedure. Medicare does not pay an assistant-at-surgery claim for this service; 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.
Where 31638 pays more and less in Maryland
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore area, MD | Unavailable | $228.67 |
| Rest of Maryland | Unavailable | $219.91 |
| Washington, DC area | Unavailable | $237.35 |
How the 31638 rate is calculated
Each of 31638’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.
How the rate is built · 31638
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work4.76
4.76 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense1.32
1.32 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.48
0.48 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
6.5600
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$219.11
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 31638
The CMS indicators that decide how 31638 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 31638
Airway stent revision, tracheal or bronchial stent
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 000 | Same-day global: pre- and post-op care on the day of the procedure is included. |
| Multiple procedures | 3 | Endoscopy family rules apply. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 1 | Not paid (statutory restriction). |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 51 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
31638 without 51 · national facility
$219.11
Airway stent revision, tracheal or bronchial stent
31638-51 · Second procedure: 50%
$109.56
When this isn’t the highest-valued procedure in the session, Medicare pays 50% of its fee schedule amount (the highest is paid at 100%).
31638 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
4 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 31636Bronchial stentInitial bronchus
- 31636 is for initial placement of an airway stent. Choose 31638 when the bronchoscopist revises a stent that was previously placed.
- 31631Airway stentTracheal stent placement
- 31631 describes airway dilation with stent placement. It is not the revision service for an existing stent.
- 31630BronchoscopyAirway dilation without stent
- 31630 describes bronchoscopic airway dilation without stent placement. Use 31638 when the service revises an existing airway stent.
31638 billing questions
When should this code be chosen instead of 31636?
Use 31638 for revision of an airway stent already in place. Code 31636 describes initial stent placement.
Can this code be reported with another bronchoscopy service on the same date?
Related endoscopies performed together are subject to CMS endoscopy-family pricing. Document each service performed and the distinct clinical work.
Does this code include same-day postoperative care?
Yes. Its 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care.
Can an assistant surgeon or co-surgeon be billed?
Medicare does not pay an assistant-at-surgery claim for this service. Co-surgeon and team-surgery billing are not permitted.
What documentation supports reporting stent revision?
Document the existing stent and its airway location, the reason it required revision, and the bronchoscopic adjustment or other revision 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
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