CPT code 98986: CBT monitoring supply, 2–15 days per 30 days2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in California

CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 98986 in California.

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

What 98986 covers

Code 98986 identifies remote therapeutic monitoring (RTM) device supply for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), in the short 2–15-day range. It is specific to CBT monitoring, rather than respiratory-system or musculoskeletal-system monitoring, which have separate RTM supply codes. The CBT sibling code 98978 represents the 16–30-day range. Selection turns on the monitored subject and the number of days in the supply interval. This code represents device supply, not the separate RTM treatment-management service represented by codes such as 98979–98981. It is not a code for providing CBT itself.

Medicare assigns 98986 physician fee schedule status C, or carrier priced. CMS publishes no national payment; the Medicare Administrative Contractor sets payment for each claim. Report the code for the CBT device-supply interval of 2–15 days, rather than the longer interval represented by 98978.

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 98986 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 98986 rate is calculated

Each of 98986’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 98986

98986 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.

98986 compared with similar codes

How to choose

98978CBT monitoring supply16–30 days

Both codes cover CBT remote-monitoring device supply. Use 98986 for 2–15 days in a 30-day period and 98978 for 16–30 days.

98984RTM device supplyRespiratory system, 2–15 days

Code 98984 is for short-interval RTM device supply for respiratory-system monitoring; 98986 is for CBT monitoring.

98985RTM device supplyMusculoskeletal, 2–15 days

Code 98985 is for short-interval RTM device supply for musculoskeletal-system monitoring; 98986 is for CBT monitoring.

Codes related to 98986

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