CPT code 44360: Small-bowel exam, diagnostic, without biopsy2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $127.59 for 44360 nationally in a facility.

Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.

What 44360 covers

This service is a diagnostic endoscopic examination of the small bowel beyond the second portion of the duodenum, without entering the ileum. A gastroenterologist typically performs it in an endoscopy suite or hospital setting to evaluate concerns such as suspected small-bowel bleeding or abnormal findings on prior testing. The code includes specimen collection by brushing or washing when performed; it does not describe tissue sampling by biopsy.

Report this code when the documented examination is diagnostic and does not include a separately specified intervention such as biopsy, lesion removal, or bleeding control. The procedure note should identify the extent reached, findings, and any brushing or washing. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When multiple procedures in the same session qualify for the standard reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this single-route anatomy. CMS does not pay an assistant at surgery and does not permit co-surgeon or team-surgery reporting for this service.

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 44360 pays more and less

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

109 of 109 payment localities

44360 rates by state

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

How the 44360 rate is calculated

Each of 44360’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 44360

The CMS indicators that decide how 44360 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

44360 compared with similar codes

How to choose

44361Small bowel endoscopyBiopsy, ileum excluded

Choose 44361 when tissue biopsy is performed during the small-bowel examination. Brushing or washing alone is included in 44360.

44363Small bowel endoscopySnare lesion removal

Choose 44363 when the endoscopist removes a foreign body; 44360 describes a diagnostic examination without that intervention.

44364Small-bowel endoscopySnare lesion removal

Choose 44364 for snare removal of a tumor, polyp, or other lesion during enteroscopy rather than a diagnostic-only examination.

Codes related to 44360

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