HCPCS code J2515: Pentobarbital injection, per 50 mg2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

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

What J2515 covers

J2515 identifies injectable pentobarbital sodium, a barbiturate used in clinical care for purposes such as sedation, anesthesia, and seizure management. It may be administered intravenously or intramuscularly. Hospitals and other clinicians report the drug code for the pentobarbital supplied or administered; the code represents the drug rather than the administration service.

CMS excludes J2515 from the physician fee schedule by regulation (status E). When Medicare covers the item or service, payment is under another method. The HCPCS pricing method identifies it as a Part B drug, generally paid using CMS quarterly Average Sales Price drug pricing files when covered. Special Medicare coverage instructions apply. One billing unit represents 50 mg of pentobarbital sodium, so a 100 mg dose 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 J2515 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

J2515 rates by state

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

How the J2515 rate is calculated

Each of J2515’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 J2515

J2515 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.

J2515 compared with similar codes

How to choose

J2560Phenobarbital injectionUp to 120 mg

J2560 identifies phenobarbital sodium injection, not pentobarbital sodium. Select the code for the drug supplied or administered.

J2561Sezaby injectionPer 1 mg

J2561 identifies the Sezaby phenobarbital product per 1 mg. It is not pentobarbital and has a different dose unit.

J2516Pentamidine injectionPer 1 mg

J2516 identifies pentamidine isethionate, an antimicrobial drug. The similar code number and name do not make it interchangeable with pentobarbital.

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