HCPCS code Q9957: Perflutren contrast, per ml2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Massachusetts
Perflutren lipid microsphere contrast improves ultrasound visualization during echocardiography and is reported according to the volume administered.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for Q9957 in Massachusetts.
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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What Q9957 covers
Perflutren lipid microspheres are an intravenously administered ultrasound contrast agent used during echocardiography to improve visualization of cardiac structures, including chamber opacification and endocardial borders. Echocardiography services using this agent may be performed in hospital imaging departments or outpatient cardiology settings. The contrast material is distinct from the echocardiographic imaging service, which is reported with its own procedure code.
Q9957 identifies the agent by volume, with one unit representing 1 mL. CMS assigns physician fee schedule status E, excluding the code from that schedule by regulation. When Medicare covers the item, payment is made under another method; HCPCS pricing is other contractor pricing, meaning the Medicare contractor sets payment. Coverage is left to the Medicare contractor’s judgment. Report the number of units corresponding to the volume administered.
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 Q9957 pays more and less in Massachusetts
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Boston, MA | Unavailable | Unavailable |
| Rest of Massachusetts | Unavailable | Unavailable |
How the Q9957 rate is calculated
Each of Q9957’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 · Q9957
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
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 Q9957
Q9957 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 · Q9957
Which rate does Medicare pay?
The POS code on the claim line (CMS-1500 box 24B).
POS 11 · non-facility rate · national
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Q9957 isn’t priced in this setting.
Q9957 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
4 codes, side by side
How to choose
- Q9950Sulfur hexafluoridePer mL
- Use Q9957 for perflutren lipid microspheres; Q9950 identifies sulfur hexafluoride lipid microspheres.
- Q9955Perflexane injectionPer milliliter
- Q9955 identifies perflexane lipid microspheres. Q9957 identifies perflutren lipid microspheres.
- Q9956Ultrasound contrastPer mL
- Q9956 identifies octafluoropropane microspheres. Choose Q9957 when the administered agent is perflutren lipid microspheres.
Q9957 billing questions
What does one unit of Q9957 represent?
One unit represents 1 mL of perflutren lipid microspheres administered. Report units according to the volume given.
How is Q9957 different from Q9950?
Q9957 identifies perflutren lipid microspheres, while Q9950 identifies sulfur hexafluoride lipid microspheres. Select the code for the agent administered.
Is Q9957 the code for the echocardiography service?
No. Q9957 identifies the contrast agent; the echocardiography code identifies the imaging service.
How does Medicare price Q9957?
CMS excludes Q9957 from the physician fee schedule under status E. When Medicare covers it, payment is made under another method, with the Medicare contractor setting payment.
Does Medicare cover Q9957?
Coverage is left to the Medicare contractor’s judgment.
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
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