CPT code 50236: Kidney and ureter removal, separate incision, bladder cuff2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $1,307.31 for 50236 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 50236 covers

A urologist removes the kidney and its entire ureter, including a cuff of bladder around the ureter’s opening, using a separate incision to reach the distal ureter. This operation is commonly performed in the operating room for upper-tract urothelial cancer when the treatment plan calls for removal of the kidney, full ureter, and bladder cuff. The separate-incision approach distinguishes this service from the corresponding procedure performed through the same incision.

Report the code when the operative report supports removal of all three structures and documents the separate incision. The bladder cuff and ureter removal are part of this operative service, rather than separate components of the same resection. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including 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%. A bilateral procedure reported with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery 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 50236 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

50236 rates by state

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

How the 50236 rate is calculated

Each of 50236’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 50236

50236 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 50

50236 compared with similar codes

How to choose

50234Kidney and ureter removalSame-incision bladder cuff

Both services include the kidney, entire ureter, and bladder cuff. The distinction is whether the distal ureter and cuff are accessed through the same incision or a separate incision.

50230Radical nephrectomyOpen, with regional or caval work

50230 covers radical nephrectomy with partial ureterectomy. Use 50236 when the operative report documents total ureterectomy, bladder-cuff removal, and a separate incision.

50220Kidney removalOpen, nonradical removal

50220 includes partial ureterectomy with nephrectomy. It does not represent the full ureter and bladder-cuff removal reported with 50236.

50240Kidney surgeryOpen partial resection

50240 is a partial nephrectomy that preserves kidney tissue. 50236 represents removal of the kidney together with the entire ureter and a bladder cuff.

Codes related to 50236

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