CPT code 48140: Pancreas resection, distal, without pancreaticojejunostomy2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $1,456.61 for 48140 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 48140 covers

Code 48140 describes removal of a substantial portion of the pancreas’s body and tail without connecting the remaining pancreas to the jejunum. The spleen may be removed or preserved. Typical indications include a neoplasm or cystic lesion in the distal gland and selected cases of chronic pancreatitis. A general surgeon or surgical oncologist usually performs the operation in a hospital operating room.

Choose the code from the operative extent and reconstruction, not the diagnosis alone. The operative report should establish the portion of pancreas removed, whether the spleen was removed, and whether a pancreaticojejunostomy was created. CMS assigns a 90-day major-surgery global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. In a same-session multiple-procedure claim, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team-surgery payment is not permitted. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code.

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 48140 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

48140 rates by state

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

How the 48140 rate is calculated

Each of 48140’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 48140

48140 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 51

48140 compared with similar codes

How to choose

48145PancreatectomyDistal resection with jejunal anastomosis

Both describe distal pancreatic resection, but 48145 includes a pancreaticojejunostomy; 48140 is selected when that reconstruction is not performed.

48120Pancreatic lesion excisionOpen local removal

48120 is for removal of a pancreatic lesion. Use 48140 when the operation removes a distal subtotal portion of the gland rather than a limited lesion.

48150Whipple procedureProximal resection with duodenectomy

48150 describes a proximal pancreatic resection involving the head and duodenum. Code 48140 is for resection of the distal gland, principally the body and tail.

Codes related to 48140

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