CPT code 97018: Paraffin therapy, superficial heat modality2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Alaska

In Alaska, Medicare pays $7.10 for 97018 in the office.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 97018 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 97018 covers

Paraffin bath therapy uses warmed paraffin wax to deliver superficial heat to a body area. Physical and occupational therapists commonly use it for a hand or wrist affected by stiffness or pain, often before therapeutic movement or hand-function activities. The patient immerses the area in the wax or has wax applied, and the therapist manages the treatment and monitors the area.

Report 97018 for the paraffin modality itself, not for exercise or other skilled treatment performed during the visit. Documentation should identify the treated area, the clinical reason for heat, and the treatment provided. This is a therapy service, so a professional-component modifier does not apply. When multiple therapy units are reported for the same patient on the same day, CMS reduces practice expense for the second and later units.

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 Alaska compares for 97018

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for 97018 runs from $5.33 in Arkansas to $7.70 in San Benito County, CA. Alaska pays $7.10. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

97018 rates by state

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

See 97018 in every payment locality

How the 97018 rate is calculated

Each of 97018’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 97018

The CMS indicators that decide how 97018 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

Codes related to 97018

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

How 97018 has changed in Alaska

Price 97018 for an earlier date of service

Where the Alaska rate applies

Alaska is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 355 cities and communities in Alaska. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Adak
• Akhiok
• Akiachak
• Akiak
• Akutan
• Alakanuk
• Alatna
• Alcan Border

Browse all communities in Alaska

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