CPT code 35572: Vein harvest, femoropopliteal segment2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 35572 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 35572 covers

A vascular surgeon harvests a segment of femoropopliteal vein from the lower extremity for use as an autologous conduit in a vascular reconstruction. This may be selected for complex arterial repair, including reconstruction when a suitable native vein is needed. The work is typically performed in the operating room as part of the same surgical episode as the reconstruction, rather than as an independent service.

Report 35572 only with an eligible primary procedure; it is an add-on code, not a standalone harvest service. The harvest code represents the conduit-gathering work, while the primary code describes the vascular reconstruction. Documentation should identify the vein harvested, its use as graft material, and the associated primary procedure. CMS payment for this add-on is included within the primary procedure’s global period, so it does not carry a separate global period.

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 35572 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 35572 rate is calculated

Each of 35572’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 35572

The CMS indicators that decide how 35572 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 80

35572 compared with similar codes

How to choose

35500Vein harvestUpper extremity conduit

Use 35572 for femoropopliteal vein harvest from the lower extremity. Code 35500 concerns harvest of an upper-extremity vein segment.

35556Arterial bypassVein graft, femoral to popliteal

Code 35556 describes a femoral-popliteal bypass using vein; 35572 describes harvesting femoropopliteal vein for use as conduit and is an add-on to a primary procedure.

35583Vein bypassIn situ, femoral to popliteal

Code 35583 describes a femoral-popliteal vein bypass operation. Code 35572 reports the distinct vein-harvest work and is not the bypass reconstruction code.

Codes related to 35572

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