CPT code 61616: Skull-base resection, intradural lesion2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $3,492.03 for 61616 in a facility. There’s no office rate.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 61616 nationwide

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

What 61616 covers

A neurosurgeon or skull-base surgeon uses this code for operative removal of a lesion involving the skull base with work on the intradural side. Examples of skull-base lesions include meningiomas and schwannomas, but the operative anatomy and dural relationship—not the diagnosis alone—guide code selection. These procedures are generally performed in a hospital operating room, sometimes with neurosurgery and otolaryngology surgeons working together.

The operative report should identify the lesion, its skull-base location, its relationship to the dura, the approach, and the work performed. Distinguish this intradural service from the extradural counterpart, 61615, and from codes for specified cranial fossae. This major surgery has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed 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 is 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.

How Washington, DC area compares for 61616

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the facility rate for 61616 runs from $2,724.00 in Wisconsin to $4,052.84 in Miami, FL. Washington, DC area pays $3,492.03. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

61616 rates by state

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

See 61616 in every payment locality

How the 61616 rate is calculated

Each of 61616’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 61616

61616 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

Codes related to 61616

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

How 61616 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 61616 for an earlier date of service

Where the Washington, DC area rate applies

Washington, DC area is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 1 cities and communities in District of Columbia. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Washington

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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