CPT code 98979: RTM management, first 10 minutes2026 Medicare rate & RVUs
Reports the first 10 minutes of monthly remote therapeutic monitoring management when a physician or qualified professional communicates interactively with the patient or caregiver.
Medicare pays $26.39 for 98979 nationally in the office and $11.36 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $24.01–$34.31.
Medicare rate · 98979
RTM management, first 10 minutes
- Work RVUs
- 0.31
- Total RVUs
- 0.79
- Global days
- XXX
National rate · 2026
$26.39
Office setting, before claim adjustments.
See every locality for 98979 →Billed by an NP, PA or therapist? →
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
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On this page 10 sections
What 98979 covers
This code covers monthly management of a remote therapeutic monitoring (RTM) program, such as reviewing transmitted information about a patient’s respiratory condition, musculoskeletal rehabilitation, or cognitive behavioral therapy and using it to guide care. A treating physician or other qualified health care professional may provide this work while the patient follows a therapy plan at home. The management can include reviewing relevant RTM data, discussing the patient’s response or adherence, and addressing the treatment plan through an interactive exchange with the patient or caregiver.
Report the code for the first 10 minutes of the physician’s or qualified professional’s RTM treatment-management time accumulated during the calendar month, with at least one interactive communication with the patient or caregiver that month. The record should identify the RTM program, the management work performed, the time counted, and the interactive communication. Select this code when the monthly management time supports its 10-minute level rather than the 20-minute level represented by 98980. RTM setup, patient education, and device-supply services are represented by separate codes in the RTM family.
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 98979 pays more and less
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
109 payment localities
$24.01 to $34.31
109 of 109 payment localities
98979 rates by state
Office rate range in each state. Select a state to see its payment localities.
Explore a state
Local rates. Clear comparisons.
Hover or focus a tile to see its rate range. Select it to open the state’s fee schedule.
$24.01
$32.43
Color shows the midpoint of each state’s locality range.
View every state and territory as a table
| State / territory | Office rate range | Localities |
|---|---|---|
| AK | $32.43 | 1 |
| AL | $24.28 | 1 |
| AR | $24.01 | 1 |
| AZ | $25.85 | 1 |
| CA | $27.91–$34.31 | 29 |
| CO | $27.44 | 1 |
| CT | $27.87 | 1 |
| DC | $29.78 | 1 |
| DE | $26.22 | 1 |
| FL | $25.86–$27.54 | 3 |
| GA | $24.76–$26.74 | 2 |
| GU | $28.40 | 1 |
| HI | $28.40 | 1 |
| IA | $24.85 | 1 |
| ID | $24.95 | 1 |
| IL | $25.21–$27.14 | 4 |
| IN | $25.07 | 1 |
| KS | $24.71 | 1 |
| KY | $24.62 | 1 |
| LA | $24.57–$25.51 | 2 |
| MA | $27.32–$29.82 | 2 |
| MD | $26.65–$29.78 | 3 |
| ME | $25.00–$26.12 | 2 |
| MI | $25.06–$26.07 | 2 |
| MN | $26.61 | 1 |
| MO | $24.21–$25.63 | 3 |
| MS | $24.12 | 1 |
| MT | $26.39 | 1 |
| NC | $25.21 | 1 |
| ND | $26.19 | 1 |
| NE | $24.97 | 1 |
| NH | $26.99 | 1 |
| NJ | $28.28–$29.57 | 2 |
| NM | $25.15 | 1 |
| NV | $26.35 | 1 |
| NY | $25.50–$30.30 | 5 |
| OH | $25.02 | 1 |
| OK | $24.63 | 1 |
| OR | $26.22–$28.21 | 2 |
| PA | $25.08–$27.28 | 2 |
| PR | $26.55 | 1 |
| RI | $27.07 | 1 |
| SC | $25.14 | 1 |
| SD | $26.16 | 1 |
| TN | $24.80 | 1 |
| TX | $24.95–$27.28 | 8 |
| UT | $25.41 | 1 |
| VA | $26.02–$29.78 | 2 |
| VI | $26.55 | 1 |
| VT | $26.06 | 1 |
| WA | $27.27–$30.41 | 2 |
| WI | $25.50 | 1 |
| WV | $24.47 | 1 |
| WY | $26.30 | 1 |
How the 98979 rate is calculated
Each of 98979’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.
How the rate is built · 98979
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work0.31
0.31 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense0.47
0.47 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.01
0.01 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
0.7900
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$26.39
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 98979
98979 has no global surgery period, no multiple-procedure, bilateral or assistant-at-surgery adjustment, and no professional/technical split. What changes the payment is where the service happens: the place of service on the claim decides whether Medicare pays the office or the facility rate.
Place of service · 98979
Which rate does Medicare pay?
The POS code on the claim line (CMS-1500 box 24B).
POS 11 · non-facility rate · national
$26.39
- Non-facility (office)
- $26.39
- Facility
- $11.36
Higher because the practice carries its own overhead.
98979 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
5 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 98980RTM managementFirst 20 minutes monthly
- Both describe monthly RTM treatment management, but 98979 covers the first 10 minutes and 98980 the first 20 minutes. Choose according to the qualifying time accumulated that month.
- 98981RTM managementEach additional 20 minutes
- 98981 is for each additional 20 minutes of RTM treatment management after the initial 20-minute level. It is not the first-time management code.
- 98975RTM setupInitial device setup and instruction
- 98975 represents RTM setup and patient education. Report 98979 for monthly treatment-management time and the required interactive communication.
- 98970Digital assessmentQualified nonphysician, 5–10 minutes
- 98970 describes an online digital assessment and management service by a nonphysician qualified professional. It is not the monthly RTM treatment-management service reported with 98979.
98979 billing questions
When should the practice report 98979 instead of 98980?
Use 98979 for the first 10 minutes of qualifying monthly RTM treatment-management time. Use 98980 when the month’s qualifying management time reaches its 20-minute level; do not report both as the first-time code for the same management time.
Is an interactive communication required?
Yes. The month must include at least one interactive communication with the patient or caregiver, and the record should identify that exchange.
What time should be documented?
Document the physician’s or qualified professional’s time spent managing the RTM program during the calendar month, including the relevant management activities. Do not use device-transmission time alone as management time.
Does 98979 include RTM setup or device supply?
No. Setup and patient education are represented by 98975, while RTM device-supply codes are selected according to the monitored system. Keep the management work distinct from those services in the record.
Can 98979 be reported more than once in a month?
It represents the first 10 minutes of monthly management time, not repeated blocks of 10 minutes. Use the applicable higher-time code when the month’s qualifying time reaches that code’s level.
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
Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
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