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CPT code 44602: Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Reports operative repair of an injured small intestine with one perforation, such as a traumatic or inadvertent bowel injury.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities1.9K Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $1,290.28 for 44602 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 44602

Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation

Office or facility?

Work RVUs
24.1
Total RVUs
38.63
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$1,290.28

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 44602 →Billed by an NP, PA or therapist? →

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

Your location

Medicare pays by the payment locality where the service is performed.

On this page 10 sections
  1. Medicare rate
  2. What 44602 covers
  3. By payment locality
  4. Rate map
  5. How it’s calculated
  6. Payment rules
  7. Similar codes
  8. Related codes
  9. Billing questions
  10. Sources

What 44602 covers

This service covers surgical closure of a single perforation in the small intestine caused by an injury. A general or colorectal surgeon typically performs the repair in an operating room, often during an urgent operation for abdominal trauma or while addressing an injury recognized during another procedure. The operative report should identify the small-bowel site, the injury, and that the repair involved one perforation.

Choose this code for one small-intestinal injury perforation; multiple perforations point to 44603, while a large-intestinal injury points to 44604 or 44605 according to perforation count. The major-surgery global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team-surgery billing 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 44602 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

44602 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$1,167.69
AlaskaUnavailable$1,621.29
ArizonaUnavailable$1,252.59
ArkansasUnavailable$1,152.91
Atlanta, GAUnavailable$1,337.53
Austin, TXUnavailable$1,285.57
Bakersfield, CAUnavailable$1,254.56
Baltimore area, MDUnavailable$1,371.45
Beaumont, TXUnavailable$1,250.41
Brazoria, TXUnavailable$1,250.06

44602 rates by state

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

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Local rates. Clear comparisons.

Hover or focus a tile to see its rate range. Select it to open the state’s fee schedule.

View every state and territory as a table
44602 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AKNo published base rate1
ALNo published base rate1
ARNo published base rate1
AZNo published base rate1
CANo published base rate29
CONo published base rate1
CTNo published base rate1
DCNo published base rate1
DENo published base rate1
FLNo published base rate3
GANo published base rate2
GUNo published base rate1
HINo published base rate1
IANo published base rate1
IDNo published base rate1
ILNo published base rate4
INNo published base rate1
KSNo published base rate1
KYNo published base rate1
LANo published base rate2
MANo published base rate2
MDNo published base rate3
MENo published base rate2
MINo published base rate2
MNNo published base rate1
MONo published base rate3
MSNo published base rate1
MTNo published base rate1
NCNo published base rate1
NDNo published base rate1
NENo published base rate1
NHNo published base rate1
NJNo published base rate2
NMNo published base rate1
NVNo published base rate1
NYNo published base rate5
OHNo published base rate1
OKNo published base rate1
ORNo published base rate2
PANo published base rate2
PRNo published base rate1
RINo published base rate1
SCNo published base rate1
SDNo published base rate1
TNNo published base rate1
TXNo published base rate8
UTNo published base rate1
VANo published base rate2
VINo published base rate1
VTNo published base rate1
WANo published base rate2
WINo published base rate1
WVNo published base rate1
WYNo published base rate1

How the 44602 rate is calculated

Each of 44602’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.

How the rate is built · 44602

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Office or facility?

Work24.10

24.10 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Practice expense8.53

8.53 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Malpractice6.00

6.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Adjusted RVUs

38.6300

Conversion factor

$33.4009

Medicare rate

$1,290.28

Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.

Payment rules and modifiers for 44602

44602 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 44602

Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation

RuleCMS valueWhat it means
Global period090Major surgery: the day before, the day of, and 90 days after are included.
Multiple procedures2Standard reduction: highest-valued procedure at 100%, others at 50%.
Bilateral (modifier 50)0The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply.
Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS)2Paid.
Co-surgeons (62)1Permitted with supporting documentation.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.
Split (54/55/56)0.09/0.81/0.10Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 44602

Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation

90-day global period ends

Dec 30, 2026

Covers Sep 30, 2026 through Dec 30, 2026 (92 days, including the day before surgery).

Visit on Oct 31, 2026

Day 30 of the 90-day post-op period: related follow-up care is included in the surgical payment.

  • 24Unrelated E/M visit by the same physician
  • 79Unrelated procedure (starts its own global period)
  • 58Staged, more extensive, or therapy procedure that was planned
  • 78Unplanned return to the operating room for a related complication
SurgeryVisit
Sep 23, 2026Jan 10, 2027

Pre-op dayGlobal period

What modifiers do to the payment

Modifier 51 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

44602 without 51 · national facility

$1,290.28

Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation

44602-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$645.14

When this isn’t the highest-valued procedure in the session, Medicare pays 50% of its fee schedule amount (the highest is paid at 100%).

When to use modifier 51

44602 compared with similar codes

Compare codes · National

5 codes, side by side

Office or facility?

  • 44602

    Small-bowel repair, single injury perforation24.1 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 44603

    Small bowel suture, each additional repair27.46 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 44604

    Colon repair, single perforation17.71 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 44605

    Colon repair, multiple perforations21.53 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 44615

    Intestinal stricturoplasty, each small-bowel stricture17.71 wRVU

    Not priced

How to choose

44603Small bowel sutureEach additional repair
Both codes repair injury perforations in the small intestine. Choose 44602 for one perforation and 44603 for multiple perforations.
44604Colon repairSingle perforation
44604 is for one injury perforation in the large intestine; 44602 is for one in the small intestine.
44605Colon repairMultiple perforations
44605 is for multiple injury perforations in the large intestine. Confirm both the bowel segment and perforation count before selecting the code.
44615Intestinal stricturoplastyEach small-bowel stricture
44615 treats an intestinal stricture with stricturoplasty. It is not the injury-perforation repair reported with 44602.

Codes related to 44602

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

Codes related to 44602
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Same family
44603Small bowel suture, each additional repairSmall-intestine injury repair for multiple perforations.No office rate
44604Colon repair, single perforationLarge-intestine injury repair for one perforation.No office rate
44605Colon repair, multiple perforationsLarge-intestine injury repair for multiple perforations.No office rate

44602 billing questions

How does 44602 differ from 44603?

44602 is for one small-bowel injury perforation. Use 44603 when the small intestine has multiple injury perforations.

How do I distinguish this from 44604 or 44605?

Those codes describe injury repair in the large intestine. Select the small- or large-intestine code based on the documented injury site, then use the perforation count to choose the level.

What documentation supports reporting 44602?

The operative report should establish an injury involving the small intestine, identify the repaired site, and document a single perforation.

Can modifier 50 be used?

No. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this repair; the CMS bilateral adjustment does not apply to the code.

How does payment work when other procedures are performed in the same session?

Under the standard multiple procedure reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are paid at 50%. The code has a 90-day major-surgery global period.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team-surgery billing is not permitted.

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

Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
RVUs for 44602PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 5,426 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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