CPT code 73722: Joint MRI, with contrast2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

Medicare pays $338.98–$433.34 for 73722 in the office in California, from Chico, CA to San Benito County, CA. Which amount applies depends on the service address.

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

What 73722 covers

This service is MRI of a lower-extremity joint, such as the hip, knee, or ankle, performed with contrast material. Imaging centers and radiology departments acquire the images, and a radiologist interprets them. The study is selected when the diagnostic question concerns a joint and the requested protocol uses contrast, including MR arthrography protocols when applicable.

Choose 73722 for a contrast-enhanced joint study, rather than 73721 for a study without contrast or 73723 when imaging is performed both without and with contrast. The order and radiology report should identify the joint and support the contrast-enhanced protocol. CMS recognizes professional and technical components: report modifier 26 for interpretation only, TC for equipment and staff only, or neither modifier for the global service. Diagnostic imaging multiple-procedure reduction applies to both components. For bilateral imaging, each side is paid separately at 100%.

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 73722 pays more and less in California

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

29 of 29 payment localities

How the 73722 rate is calculated

Each of 73722’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 73722

The CMS indicators that decide how 73722 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

73722 compared with similar codes

How to choose

73721Lower extremity joint MRIWithout contrast

73721 is for a lower-extremity joint MRI without contrast. Report 73722 when the joint study uses contrast.

73723Joint MRIWithout and with contrast

73723 is for joint MRI performed both without and with contrast. Report 73722 when the study is performed with contrast only.

73719Extremity MRIWith contrast, non-joint

73719 is MRI of lower-extremity anatomy with contrast, rather than a study specifically directed at a joint.

73701Extremity CTWith contrast

73701 describes contrast-enhanced CT of the lower extremity. Choose 73722 when the selected modality is MRI and the target is a joint.

Codes related to 73722

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