Billing code 15610: Flap delayMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $391.46 for 15610 nationally in the office and $235.48 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $343.02–$524.49.

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

What 15610 covers

This code covers a preparatory operation on a flap intended for later reconstruction of an arm or leg. The surgeon surgically alters or partially sections the planned flap so it can develop a more reliable blood supply before transfer. Plastic and reconstructive surgeons commonly perform this staged work in an operating room when a flap is planned for coverage of a traumatic or surgical defect. The later flap transfer is a distinct reconstructive step, not the delay procedure itself.

Report 15610 when the operative record supports flap preparation on an upper or lower extremity, rather than on another anatomic site. Document the flap location, the preparatory surgical work, and its role in the planned reconstruction. The code has a 90-day global period that includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; co-surgeons and team surgery 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 15610 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

15610 rates by state

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

How the 15610 rate is calculated

Each of 15610’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 15610

15610 has a 90-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

15610 compared with similar codes

How to choose

15600Flap delay

15600 applies to a trunk flap; 15610 is for flap preparation on an arm or leg.

15620Flap delay

15620 covers its specified face, scalp, neck, axilla, genital, hand, or foot sites. Select 15610 for other arm or leg flap-delay work.

15630Flap staging

15630 is for delay procedures involving the eye, nose, ear, or lip, rather than an arm or leg.

15650Pedicle flap transfer

15650 describes transfer of a skin pedicle flap. 15610 is the preparatory delay procedure before a planned flap reconstruction.

Codes related to 15610

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