Billing code 11444: Skin excisionMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $288.25 for 11444 nationally in the office and $200.07 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $257.31–$368.16.

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

What 11444 covers

This service removes a clinically benign skin lesion from the face, ears, eyelids, nose, or lips. Dermatologists, plastic surgeons, and other physicians may perform it in an office or facility setting. The size category is based on the excised diameter, including the margins, rather than the lesion alone. The code covers one lesion; documentation should identify its site, diagnosis, and measurement with margins.

Report this level when the documented excised diameter is 3.1–4 cm and the site belongs to this facial group. Simple closure is included; a separately documented intermediate or complex repair may be reported when supported. The procedure has a 10-day global period, so related postoperative visits during that period are included. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others are subject to the standard multiple procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this procedure, and co-surgeon and team-surgery billing are not permitted.

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 11444 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

11444 rates by state

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

How the 11444 rate is calculated

Each of 11444’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 11444

11444 has a 10-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

11444 compared with similar codes

How to choose

11443Skin excision

Use 11443 when the excised diameter, including margins, is 2.1–3 cm. This code is for a diameter of 3.1–4 cm.

11404Skin excision

11404 is for the trunk and extremities, not the face, ears, eyelids, nose, or lips. Site determines the code family even when the size is similar.

11644Malignant lesion excision

11644 is for a malignant lesion in this facial site group and size range; this code is for a benign lesion.

12052Wound repair

12052 describes a qualifying intermediate repair, not lesion excision. Its repair-length criteria are distinct from the excised lesion diameter used here.

Codes related to 11444

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