CPT code 32670: Thoracoscopic lung resection, two lobes removed2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 32670 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 32670 covers

A thoracic surgeon uses a camera and instruments inserted through small chest incisions to remove two lobes of the right lung. The operation may involve the upper and middle lobes or the middle and lower lobes. It is performed in an operating room, commonly for a tumor or other localized lung disease that requires removal of both lobes. The operative report should identify the lobes removed and document the thoracoscopic approach and clinical reason for the resection.

Report this code when the procedure removes two lobes, rather than one lobe, a lung segment, or the entire lung. It has a 90-day global period, which includes the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care during that period. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this procedure. 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.

Where 32670 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 32670 rate is calculated

Each of 32670’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 32670

32670 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 51

32670 compared with similar codes

How to choose

32663Thoracoscopic lobectomySingle pulmonary lobe

Use 32663 when the thoracoscopic resection removes one lobe. Use 32670 when it removes two lobes.

32669Lung resectionAnatomic segmentectomy

Code 32669 describes a thoracoscopic segmental resection, which removes less than a full lobe; 32670 represents removal of two lobes.

32671PneumonectomyThoracoscopic approach

Code 32671 is for thoracoscopic removal of the entire lung. Code 32670 removes two lobes while leaving the remaining lung tissue.

Codes related to 32670

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