CPT code 33981: VAD pump replacement, extracorporeal device2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $819.56 for 33981 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 33981 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 33981 covers

This service replaces the external pump component of an extracorporeal ventricular assist device (VAD) used to support circulation when a patient’s heart cannot provide adequate output. It is generally performed by a cardiac surgeon in an operating room or comparable surgical setting. The code distinguishes an extracorporeal pump exchange from replacement of an implanted intracorporeal VAD pump.

Report the code when the operative record supports replacement of the extracorporeal VAD pump, not initial device placement or device removal alone. Documentation should identify the VAD as extracorporeal, describe the pump replacement, and establish whether the device supports one or both ventricles. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, CMS applies the standard multiple procedure reduction: the highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures are paid at 50%.

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 33981

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 33981 runs from $666.66 in Wisconsin to $971.00 in Alaska. Washington, DC area pays $819.56. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

33981 rates by state

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

See 33981 in every payment locality

How the 33981 rate is calculated

Each of 33981’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 33981

The CMS indicators that decide how 33981 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

Codes related to 33981

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

How 33981 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 33981 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