Billing code 21121: Sliding genioplastyMedicare rate & RVUs

Reports a single-piece chin osteotomy repositioned to correct chin projection, asymmetry, or contour by moving the bone segment.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities

Medicare pays $649.98 for 21121 nationally in the office and $486.99 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $584.18–$826.56.

Medicare rate · 21121

Sliding genioplasty

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
7.61
Total RVUs
19.46
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$649.98

Office setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 21121 → · 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.

On this page 10 sections
  1. Medicare rate
  2. What 21121 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 21121 covers

This operation reshapes the chin by cutting the mandibular symphysis as one segment, moving that segment to a planned position, and securing it. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons and plastic surgeons perform it in an operating room for concerns such as chin retrusion, excess projection, asymmetry, or vertical contour. It may be performed alone or as part of orthognathic reconstruction.

Choose 21121 when the operative report documents one sliding bone segment; a multisegment osteotomy or added augmentation changes the code selection. Document the osteotomy configuration, direction of movement, fixation, and any graft or implant work. CMS assigns a 90-day major-surgery global: the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care through day 90 are included. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others are subject to the standard 50% reduction. CMS permits assistant-at-surgery payment, but not co-surgeon or team-surgery payment. The midline chin procedure is reported without modifier 50; bilateral adjustment is inappropriate.

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 21121 pays more and less

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

109 payment localities

$584.18 to $826.56

$584.18$705.37$826.56
One dot per payment locality, office / nonfacility. Hover a dot to see the locality; select it to open that rate.

109 of 109 payment localities

21121 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
Alabama$591.53$448.91
Alaska*$787.86$614.27
Arizona$634.43$476.48
Arkansas$584.18$444.16
Atlanta$662.45$496.85
Austin$668.45$496.00
Bakersfield$678.66$500.01
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys$687.71$512.81
Beaumont$614.91$466.58
Brazoria$642.32$480.79

21121 rates by state

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

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.

$584.18

$787.86

Color shows the midpoint of each state’s locality range.

View every state and territory as a table
21121 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AK$787.861
AL$591.531
AR$584.181
AZ$634.431
CA$676.03–$826.5629
CO$670.141
CT$689.411
DC$732.271
DE$643.921
FL$648.46–$709.453
GA$615.95–$662.452
GU$687.991
HI$687.991
IA$601.291
ID$605.331
IL$634.44–$691.234
IN$608.271
KS$600.361
KY$606.801
LA$606.59–$632.302
MA$667.59–$728.352
MD$654.54–$732.273
ME$609.66–$635.962
MI$621.82–$657.082
MN$640.161
MO$598.62–$632.443
MS$591.421
MT$649.921
NC$614.921
ND$632.721
NE$603.671
NH$661.391
NJ$696.71–$726.652
NM$625.381
NV$645.501
NY$623.01–$760.475
OH$618.311
OK$604.261
OR$639.88–$687.322
PA$618.31–$675.202
PR$653.581
RI$663.781
SC$617.751
SD$630.691
TN$603.151
TX$614.91–$668.458
UT$625.011
VA$635.20–$732.272
VI$653.581
VT$631.961
WA$665.78–$740.622
WI$614.471
WV$614.461
WY$642.431

How the 21121 rate is calculated

Each of 21121’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 · 21121

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 7.61Practice expense 10.98Malpractice 0.87

19.4600 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$649.98

All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.

Payment rules and modifiers for 21121

21121 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 21121

Sliding genioplasty

RuleCMS valueWhat it means
Global period090Major surgery: the day before, the day of, and 90 days after are included.
Multiple procedures2Standard reduction: highest-valued procedure at 100%, others at 50%.
Bilateral (modifier 50)0The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply.
Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS)2Paid.
Co-surgeons (62)0Not permitted.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.
Split (54/55/56)0.10/0.69/0.21Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 21121

Sliding genioplasty

90-day global period ends

Dec 30, 2026

Covers Sep 30, 2026 through Dec 30, 2026 (92 days, including the day before surgery).

Visit on Oct 31, 2026

Day 30 of the 90-day post-op period: related follow-up care is included in the surgical payment.

  • 24 Unrelated E/M visit by the same physician
  • 79 Unrelated procedure (starts its own global period)
  • 58 Staged, more extensive, or therapy procedure that was planned
  • 78 Unplanned return to the operating room for a related complication
SurgeryVisit
Sep 23, 2026Jan 10, 2027

Pre-op dayGlobal period

What modifiers do to the payment

Modifier 51 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

21121 without 51 · national office

$649.98

Sliding genioplasty

21121-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$324.99

When this isn’t the highest-valued procedure in the session, Medicare pays 50% of its fee schedule amount (the highest is paid at 100%).

When to use modifier 51

21121 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

21121 vs 21120 vs 21122 vs 21123: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 21121
    Sliding genioplasty · 7.61 wRVU
    $649.98
  • 21120
    Chin augmentation · 4.97 wRVU
    $715.45+$65.47
  • 21122
    Sliding genioplasty · 8.49 wRVU
    —
  • 21123
    Chin augmentation · 11.06 wRVU
    —

How to choose

21120Chin augmentation
21120 describes augmentation of the chin. Choose 21121 when the surgeon repositions a single osteotomized bone segment instead.
21122Sliding genioplasty
21122 is for a sliding osteotomy divided into two or more segments; 21121 is the single-segment procedure.
21123Chin augmentation
21123 includes augmentation with the sliding osteotomy. Use 21121 when the documented procedure is a single-piece sliding osteotomy without that augmentation.

21121 billing questions

How does 21121 differ from 21122?

21121 describes a sliding genioplasty using one bone segment. Use 21122 when the osteotomy divides the chin into two or more segments.

When is 21123 used instead?

Use 21123 when augmentation is performed with the sliding osteotomy. The operative report should identify the augmentation material or graft work.

Can modifier 50 be reported?

No. The chin is a midline site for this procedure, and CMS identifies modifier 50 as inappropriate.

Can an assistant surgeon be paid?

CMS permits assistant-at-surgery payment for 21121. Co-surgeon and team-surgery payment are not permitted for this code.

What postoperative care is included?

The 90-day global includes the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care through day 90.

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

Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
RVUs for 21121PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 1,878 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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