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HCPCS code J1250: Dobutamine injection, per 250 mg2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Reports dobutamine hydrochloride supplied for intravenous cardiac support or pharmacologic stress testing, with each unit representing 250 mg of the drug.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities

Medicare rate · J1250

Dobutamine injection, per 250 mg

Office or facility?

Work RVUs
0
Total RVUs
0.00
Global days
XXX

National rate · 2026

—

Not priced in the facility setting.

See every locality for J1250 →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.

Your location

Medicare pays by the payment locality where the service is performed.

On this page 10 sections
  1. Medicare rate
  2. What J1250 covers
  3. By payment locality
  4. Rate map
  5. How it’s calculated
  6. Payment rules
  7. Similar codes
  8. Related codes
  9. Billing questions
  10. Sources

What J1250 covers

Dobutamine hydrochloride is an intravenous inotropic drug that increases the heart’s pumping strength. It may be administered in acute care to support cardiac output or during pharmacologic cardiac stress testing, including stress echocardiography, when a patient cannot adequately exercise. Hospitals and other clinicians furnishing the drug report the HCPCS drug code for the amount provided; the code identifies the drug quantity, not the infusion time or administration work.

CMS assigns this code physician fee schedule status E, meaning it is excluded from that schedule by regulation. When Medicare covers the drug, payment is handled through another method; the HCPCS pricing method identifies it as a Part B drug generally paid using CMS quarterly Average Sales Price drug files. Special Medicare coverage instructions apply. One unit represents 250 mg, so 500 mg corresponds to two 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.

Where J1250 pays more and less

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

109 of 109 payment localities

J1250 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailableUnavailable
AlaskaUnavailableUnavailable
ArizonaUnavailableUnavailable
ArkansasUnavailableUnavailable
Atlanta, GAUnavailableUnavailable
Austin, TXUnavailableUnavailable
Bakersfield, CAUnavailableUnavailable
Baltimore area, MDUnavailableUnavailable
Beaumont, TXUnavailableUnavailable
Brazoria, TXUnavailableUnavailable

J1250 rates by state

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

MEWIVTNHMTNDMNMINYMARIWAIDWYSDIAILINOHPANJCTORNVUTCONEMOKYWVVAMDDECAAZNMKSOKARTNNCSCDCTXLAMSALGAFLAKHI

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.

View every state and territory as a table
J1250 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AKNo published base rate1
ALNo published base rate1
ARNo published base rate1
AZNo published base rate1
CANo published base rate29
CONo published base rate1
CTNo published base rate1
DCNo published base rate1
DENo published base rate1
FLNo published base rate3
GANo published base rate2
GUNo published base rate1
HINo published base rate1
IANo published base rate1
IDNo published base rate1
ILNo published base rate4
INNo published base rate1
KSNo published base rate1
KYNo published base rate1
LANo published base rate2
MANo published base rate2
MDNo published base rate3
MENo published base rate2
MINo published base rate2
MNNo published base rate1
MONo published base rate3
MSNo published base rate1
MTNo published base rate1
NCNo published base rate1
NDNo published base rate1
NENo published base rate1
NHNo published base rate1
NJNo published base rate2
NMNo published base rate1
NVNo published base rate1
NYNo published base rate5
OHNo published base rate1
OKNo published base rate1
ORNo published base rate2
PANo published base rate2
PRNo published base rate1
RINo published base rate1
SCNo published base rate1
SDNo published base rate1
TNNo published base rate1
TXNo published base rate8
UTNo published base rate1
VANo published base rate2
VINo published base rate1
VTNo published base rate1
WANo published base rate2
WINo published base rate1
WVNo published base rate1
WYNo published base rate1

How the J1250 rate is calculated

Each of J1250’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 · J1250

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Office or facility?

Work0.00

0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Practice expense0.00

0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Malpractice0.00

0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Adjusted RVUs

0.0000

Conversion factor

$33.4009

Medicare rate

$0.00

Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.

Payment rules and modifiers for J1250

J1250 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 · J1250

Which rate does Medicare pay?

The POS code on the claim line (CMS-1500 box 24B).

POS 11 · non-facility rate · national

—

J1250 isn’t priced in this setting.

J1250 compared with similar codes

Compare codes · National

4 codes, side by side

Office or facility?

  • J1250

    Dobutamine injection, per 250 mg0 wRVU

    Not priced

  • J1265

    Dopamine injection, per 40 mg0 wRVU

    Not priced

  • J1245

    Dipyridamole injection, per 10 mg0 wRVU

    Not priced

  • J0153

    Adenosine injection, per 1 mg0 wRVU

    Not priced

How to choose

J1265Dopamine injectionPer 40 mg
J1265 is for dopamine, not dobutamine. Use the code matching the drug administered.
J1245Dipyridamole injectionPer 10 mg
J1245 identifies dipyridamole injection, a different pharmacologic stress agent. J1250 is for dobutamine hydrochloride.
J0153Adenosine injectionPer 1 mg
J0153 identifies adenosine injection. It is not interchangeable with J1250, which reports dobutamine hydrochloride in 250 mg units.

Codes related to J1250

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

Codes related to J1250
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Used instead
J1265Dopamine injection, per 40 mgDopamine is a different inotropic drug used for cardiac support.No office rate
J1245Dipyridamole injection, per 10 mgDipyridamole is a different pharmacologic agent used for cardiac stress testing.No office rate
J0153Adenosine injection, per 1 mgAdenosine is another pharmacologic cardiac stress agent, reported by its own drug code.No office rate

J1250 billing questions

How many milligrams does one unit represent?

One unit represents 250 mg of dobutamine hydrochloride. For example, 500 mg corresponds to two units.

Is this the code for the dobutamine infusion service?

No. J1250 identifies the drug quantity, not infusion time or administration work.

How does Medicare treat J1250?

CMS assigns status E, excluding it from the physician fee schedule. When Medicare covers the drug, the HCPCS pricing method identifies Part B drug pricing through CMS quarterly ASP files, and special coverage instructions apply.

When is dobutamine used for cardiac stress testing?

It may be used as a pharmacologic stress agent, including during stress echocardiography, when adequate exercise stress is not feasible.

How is J1250 different from the dopamine injection code?

J1250 identifies dobutamine hydrochloride in 250 mg units. J1265 identifies dopamine; select the code for the drug actually administered.

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

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