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Billing code 26070: Hand joint arthrotomyMedicare rate & RVUs

Open exploration, drainage, or foreign-body removal in a carpometacarpal joint is reported when the surgeon treats pathology within that joint.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities195 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $312.97 for 26070 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 26070

Hand joint arthrotomy

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
3.71
Total RVUs
9.37
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$312.97

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 26070 → · 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 26070 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 26070 covers

This code describes an open procedure on a carpometacarpal joint of the hand to investigate the joint, drain it, or remove a foreign body. Orthopedic or hand surgeons typically perform it in an operating room when a joint problem requires direct surgical access, such as suspected joint infection or an intra-articular foreign body. The procedure concerns the joint itself, not an adjacent tendon sheath, palm bursa, or finger joint.

Select the code based on the carpometacarpal joint treated and the operative work documented. The operative report should identify the joint and describe the exploration, drainage, or foreign-body removal. These services are part of the arthrotomy rather than separate services for the same joint. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 identifies bilateral surgery and is paid at 150%. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery; 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 26070 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

26070 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$282.32
Alaska*Unavailable$375.54
ArizonaUnavailable$304.54
ArkansasUnavailable$278.50
AtlantaUnavailable$320.56
AustinUnavailable$320.27
BakersfieldUnavailable$322.41
Baltimore/Surr. CntysUnavailable$332.47
BeaumontUnavailable$296.38
BrazoriaUnavailable$307.46

26070 rates by state

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

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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.

View every state and territory as a table
26070 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AKNo published base rate1
ALNo published base rate1
ARNo published base rate1
AZNo published base rate1
CANo published base rate29
CONo published base rate1
CTNo published base rate1
DCNo published base rate1
DENo published base rate1
FLNo published base rate3
GANo published base rate2
GUNo published base rate1
HINo published base rate1
IANo published base rate1
IDNo published base rate1
ILNo published base rate4
INNo published base rate1
KSNo published base rate1
KYNo published base rate1
LANo published base rate2
MANo published base rate2
MDNo published base rate3
MENo published base rate2
MINo published base rate2
MNNo published base rate1
MONo published base rate3
MSNo published base rate1
MTNo published base rate1
NCNo published base rate1
NDNo published base rate1
NENo published base rate1
NHNo published base rate1
NJNo published base rate2
NMNo published base rate1
NVNo published base rate1
NYNo published base rate5
OHNo published base rate1
OKNo published base rate1
ORNo published base rate2
PANo published base rate2
PRNo published base rate1
RINo published base rate1
SCNo published base rate1
SDNo published base rate1
TNNo published base rate1
TXNo published base rate8
UTNo published base rate1
VANo published base rate2
VINo published base rate1
VTNo published base rate1
WANo published base rate2
WINo published base rate1
WVNo published base rate1
WYNo published base rate1

How the 26070 rate is calculated

Each of 26070’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 · 26070

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 3.71Practice expense 4.98Malpractice 0.68

9.3700 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$312.97

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 26070

26070 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 26070

Hand joint arthrotomy

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)1Bilateral with modifier 50 pays 150% of the fee schedule amount.
Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS)1Not paid (statutory restriction).
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 · 26070

Hand joint arthrotomy

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 50 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

26070 without 50 · national facility

$312.97

Hand joint arthrotomy

26070-50 · Bilateral: 150%

$469.46

Both sides on one line with modifier 50 are paid at 150% of the fee schedule amount (subject to multiple-procedure rules with other procedures).

When to use modifier 50

26070 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

26070 vs 26075 vs 26080 vs 26020: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 26070
    Hand joint arthrotomy · 3.71 wRVU
    —
  • 26075
    Finger joint surgery · 3.81 wRVU
    —
  • 26080
    Finger joint arthrotomy · 4.36 wRVU
    —
  • 26020
    Tendon sheath drainage · 6.67 wRVU
    —

How to choose

26075Finger joint surgery
26075 addresses the metacarpophalangeal joint. Choose 26070 for a carpometacarpal joint.
26080Finger joint arthrotomy
26080 is for an interphalangeal joint. The joint location, rather than the general act of exploration or drainage, distinguishes it from 26070.
26020Tendon sheath drainage
26020 applies when drainage is performed on a hand tendon sheath. Use 26070 when the operative work is within a carpometacarpal joint.

Codes related to 26070

Related codes aren’t interchangeable: bill the code that matches the service performed.

Codes related to 26070
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Same family
26075Finger joint surgeryRelated arthrotomy code for exploration or treatment at the metacarpophalangeal joint.No office rate
26080Finger joint arthrotomyRelated arthrotomy code for exploration or treatment at an interphalangeal joint.No office rate
Used instead
26020Tendon sheath drainageDrainage code when the operative target is a hand tendon sheath rather than a carpometacarpal joint.No office rate
26010Abscess drainageConsider for drainage of a finger abscess when the target is an abscess, not a carpometacarpal joint.$326.29–$515.22

26070 billing questions

How does this differ from 26075?

26070 is for an arthrotomy involving a carpometacarpal joint. Code 26075 is for the corresponding work at a metacarpophalangeal joint.

Does this code include drainage or foreign-body removal?

Yes. Exploration, drainage, or removal of a foreign body from the carpometacarpal joint is included in the reported arthrotomy; do not separately report those same-joint tasks.

When should 26020 be considered instead?

Use 26020 when the operative target is a hand tendon sheath that requires drainage, rather than the carpometacarpal joint.

What documentation supports reporting 26070?

The operative note should identify the carpometacarpal joint and document the open joint work performed, such as exploration, drainage, or foreign-body removal.

How is bilateral treatment reported?

For bilateral procedures, report modifier 50; CMS lists payment at 150%.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

CMS lists a statutory restriction on assistant-at-surgery payment and does not permit co-surgeons or team surgery for this code.

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 26070PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 2,539 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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