CPT code 78453: Heart perfusion imaging, single planar study2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

Medicare pays $283.64–$365.16 for 78453 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 78453 covers

This service captures planar nuclear images of myocardial perfusion for one study, performed at rest or under stress. A cardiologist, radiologist, or nuclear medicine physician may interpret the images; the technical work is typically performed in a hospital imaging department or an equipped outpatient practice. The study helps evaluate blood flow to the heart muscle, including in patients assessed for suspected or known coronary artery disease.

Report 78453 when the examination includes one planar perfusion study; use a multiple-study or tomographic code when the documented protocol calls for those respective formats. The record should support the indication, the rest or stress protocol, the planar acquisition, and the physician’s interpretation. Modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation, modifier TC identifies the technical service, and an unmodified claim represents the global service. When multiple cardiovascular diagnostic procedures are billed, CMS applies the multiple-procedure reduction to the technical component.

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 78453 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 78453 rate is calculated

Each of 78453’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 78453

The CMS indicators that decide how 78453 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

78453 compared with similar codes

How to choose

78454Heart imagingMultiple planar studies

Choose 78453 for one planar study; 78454 represents a multiple-study planar protocol.

78451Cardiac SPECTSingle rest or stress study

Both describe a single myocardial perfusion study, but 78451 uses SPECT tomographic imaging rather than planar imaging.

78452Nuclear stress testSPECT, multiple perfusion studies

78452 is for multiple SPECT studies; 78453 is for one planar study.

78429Cardiac PETSingle metabolic study with CT

78429 reports PET myocardial perfusion imaging with CT, not the planar acquisition reported by 78453.

Codes related to 78453

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