CPT code 35521: Arterial bypass, axillary-to-femoral, vein conduit2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $1,207.58 for 35521 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 35521 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 35521 covers

A vascular surgeon creates an extra-anatomic route from the axillary artery to a femoral artery using a vein conduit. This can restore lower-extremity blood flow when severe aortoiliac occlusive disease makes a direct aortic reconstruction unsuitable. The operation is performed in an operating room and includes the graft route and its arterial connections. The code identifies a single femoral outflow; a reconstruction branching to both femoral arteries is a different service.

Select the code when the operative report supports an axillary inflow, one femoral target, and a vein conduit. Document the bypass path, target artery, conduit, and laterality. The service has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; 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 35521

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 35521 runs from $974.25 in Wisconsin to $1,431.78 in Miami, FL. Washington, DC area pays $1,207.58. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

35521 rates by state

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

See 35521 in every payment locality

How the 35521 rate is calculated

Each of 35521’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 35521

35521 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 35521

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

How 35521 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 35521 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