CPT code 47553: Biliary endoscopy, with biopsy2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Maryland
Reports percutaneous endoscopic inspection of the bile ducts when the physician obtains one or more tissue samples, such as during evaluation of a stricture.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 47553 in Maryland.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
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What 47553 covers
A physician advances an endoscope through percutaneous access to inspect the biliary tree and obtain tissue from a ductal abnormality. Interventional radiologists and other physicians who perform percutaneous biliary procedures may use this approach to evaluate an indeterminate stricture or suspected duct lesion, often through access established for biliary drainage.
Report this code when endoscopic visualization is paired with biopsy; the code covers one or multiple samples in the session. Documentation should identify the access route, endoscopic findings, biopsy site or sites, and tissue sampling performed. Distinguish biopsy from diagnostic endoscopy with brushing or washing alone and from endoscopy performed for another therapeutic intervention. The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care. When related endoscopies are performed together, CMS endoscopy-family pricing applies. The anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate; assistant-at-surgery payment is statutorily restricted, and co-surgeons and team surgery are 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 47553 pays more and less in Maryland
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore area, MD | Unavailable | $263.62 |
| Rest of Maryland | Unavailable | $252.58 |
| Washington, DC area | Unavailable | $270.10 |
How the 47553 rate is calculated
Each of 47553’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 · 47553
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work6.18
6.18 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense0.57
0.57 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.81
0.81 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
7.5600
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$252.51
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 47553
The CMS indicators that decide how 47553 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 47553
Biliary endoscopy, with biopsy
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 000 | Same-day global: pre- and post-op care on the day of the procedure is included. |
| Multiple procedures | 3 | Endoscopy family rules apply. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 1 | Not paid (statutory restriction). |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 51 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
47553 without 51 · national facility
$252.51
Biliary endoscopy, with biopsy
47553-51 · Second procedure: 50%
$126.26
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%).
47553 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
4 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 47552Biliary endoscopyDiagnostic, through existing access
- Choose 47552 for diagnostic percutaneous biliary endoscopy with brushing or washing specimen collection. Choose 47553 when the physician obtains tissue by biopsy.
- 47543Biliary biopsyPercutaneous endoluminal sampling
- 47543 is for percutaneous endoluminal biopsy of the biliary tree by a biopsy method; 47553 requires endoscopic visualization with biopsy.
- 47554Biliary endoscopyCalculus removal
- 47554 is the sibling endoscopy code for calculus removal. Report 47553 when biopsy, rather than that therapeutic intervention, defines the endoscopic service.
47553 billing questions
When should I report this instead of 47552?
Use 47553 when the percutaneous endoscopy includes tissue biopsy. Code 47552 describes diagnostic endoscopy with specimen collection by brushing or washing.
Can I report multiple units for several biopsies?
The code includes single or multiple biopsies during the endoscopic session. Document the biopsy sites and sampling performed rather than counting each specimen as a separate unit.
Is brushing or washing included when a biopsy is performed?
The defining service is endoscopic biopsy. Do not separately report 47552 for diagnostic brushing or washing performed as part of the same endoscopy without support for a separately reportable service.
What global-period services are included?
The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care. It does not create a multi-day postoperative period for this procedure.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be paid for this procedure?
CMS statutorily restricts assistant-at-surgery payment for this code. Co-surgeons and team surgery are 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
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