CPT code 72202: SI joint X-ray, three or more views2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $38.75 for 72202 nationally in the office. Local office rates run $34.09–$52.83.

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

What 72202 covers

This examination uses X-rays to assess the sacroiliac joints, where the sacrum meets the ilium. Clinicians may order it when evaluating persistent low-back or buttock pain, suspected sacroiliitis, or changes associated with inflammatory disease. A radiologic technologist obtains the images in an outpatient imaging center, hospital department, or office with radiography equipment; a physician, commonly a radiologist, interprets the study and documents the findings.

Select this code when the documented examination contains three or more views of the sacroiliac joints. The report and image record should support the anatomy examined and the number of views; do not select it based only on the suspected diagnosis. CMS recognizes professional and technical components: report modifier 26 for the interpretation, modifier TC for the equipment and staff, or neither modifier when billing the global service. The professional and technical portions may be separately priced.

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 72202 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

72202 rates by state

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

How the 72202 rate is calculated

Each of 72202’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 72202

The CMS indicators that decide how 72202 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

72202 compared with similar codes

How to choose

72200SI joint X-rayFewer than three views

Both codes examine the sacroiliac joints. Use 72202 for three or more views and 72200 for the lower view-count study.

72220Sacrum X-raySacrum and coccyx

This code targets the sacrum and coccyx rather than the sacroiliac joints. Select based on the anatomy actually imaged.

72100Lumbar spine X-rayTwo or three views

This code reports lumbar spine radiographs, not a dedicated sacroiliac joint examination. A separate study may be appropriate when both regions are imaged and interpreted.

Codes related to 72202

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