CPT code 77261: Radiation planning, simple complexity2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in New Orleans, LA

In New Orleans, LA, Medicare pays $68.65 for 77261 in the office and $68.65 when it’s performed in a hospital or facility.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 77261 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 77261 covers

A radiation oncologist uses this service to develop a simple external-beam radiation treatment approach after reviewing relevant clinical information, such as the cancer diagnosis, disease extent, imaging, and prior treatment. Planning may include defining the treatment approach and determining the intended dose and beam arrangement. It is performed in radiation oncology practices and hospital-based cancer centers as part of preparing a patient’s course of treatment.

Select the simple level based on the documented complexity of the physician’s planning work; do not infer the level from a field count alone. The record should support the clinical information reviewed and the treatment decisions made. CMS identifies 77261 as a professional-component-only service: it represents the physician’s interpretation and report, while a separate code accounts for the technical portion. Field simulation and dosimetry calculations are distinct services when performed and documented; this planning code does not itself describe those services.

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 New Orleans, LA compares for 77261

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for 77261 runs from $65.14 in Arkansas to $91.60 in Alaska. New Orleans, LA pays $68.65. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

77261 rates by state

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

See 77261 in every payment locality

How the 77261 rate is calculated

Each of 77261’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 77261

The CMS indicators that decide how 77261 is paid alongside other services.

Codes related to 77261

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

How 77261 has changed in New Orleans, LA

Price 77261 for an earlier date of service

Where the New Orleans, LA rate applies

New Orleans, LA is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 37 cities and communities in Louisiana. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• New Orleans
• Arabi
• Avondale
• Barataria
• Belle Chasse
• Boothville
• Bridge City
• Buras

Browse all communities in Louisiana

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