HCPCS code G0396: Brief intervention, alcohol or other substance, 15–30 minutes2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Austin, TX

In Austin, TX, Medicare pays $37.66 for G0396 in the office and $29.18 when it’s performed in a hospital or facility.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · G0396 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 G0396 covers

G0396 covers a structured assessment for alcohol or other substance use followed by a brief intervention, with 15–30 minutes spent on the service. A clinician may use an instrument such as AUDIT for alcohol or DAST for drug use, discuss the findings, advise behavior change, and arrange treatment referral when indicated. The service involves more than administering a questionnaire; it includes assessment and a responsive intervention.

Select G0396 based on the documented assessment, intervention, and time, not solely on a substance-use diagnosis or screening result. Record the instrument or assessment method, findings, counseling provided, total service time, and any referral or follow-up plan. Use G0397 when the documented service exceeds 30 minutes. CMS assigns work, practice expense, and malpractice relative values to G0396 in the physician fee schedule, with practice-expense values differing by office and facility setting.

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 Austin, TX compares for G0396

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for G0396 runs from $34.22 in Arkansas to $47.90 in Alaska. Austin, TX pays $37.66. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

G0396 rates by state

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

See G0396 in every payment locality

How the G0396 rate is calculated

Each of G0396’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 G0396

G0396 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.

Codes related to G0396

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

How G0396 has changed in Austin, TX

Price G0396 for an earlier date of service

Where the Austin, TX rate applies

Austin, TX is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 31 cities and communities in Texas. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• G0396 in Austin · multiple payment areas
• Barton Creek
• Bee Cave
• Briarcliff
• G0396 in Cedar Park · multiple payment areas
• G0396 in Creedmoor · multiple payment areas
• G0396 in Elgin · multiple payment areas
• Garfield

Browse all communities in Texas

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