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CPT code 27415: Knee allograft2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Open knee osteochondral allograft transplantation restores a focal articular-surface defect using donor cartilage and its supporting bone.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities92 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $1,258.55 for 27415 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 27415

Knee allograft

Office or facility?

Work RVUs
19.5
Total RVUs
37.68
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$1,258.55

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 27415 →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.

Your location

Medicare pays by the payment locality where the service is performed.

On this page 10 sections
  1. Medicare rate
  2. What 27415 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 27415 covers

This open knee procedure restores a focal articular-surface defect by implanting donor osteochondral tissue—cartilage with its supporting bone—into a prepared recipient site. Orthopedic surgeons use it for selected symptomatic defects of a knee joint surface, such as a femoral condyle, when donor tissue is needed to replace damaged cartilage and underlying bone. It is generally performed in an operating room, commonly in a hospital facility.

Report 27415 when the operative documentation supports an open allograft transplant, rather than tissue harvested from the patient or a cell-based implantation. Document the defect’s location, the recipient-site preparation, and use and implantation of donor tissue. The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care through day 90. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is 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 27415 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

27415 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$1,139.81
AlaskaUnavailable$1,552.43
ArizonaUnavailable$1,224.06
ArkansasUnavailable$1,125.24
Atlanta, GAUnavailable$1,295.86
Austin, TXUnavailable$1,271.23
Bakersfield, CAUnavailable$1,261.71
Baltimore area, MDUnavailable$1,336.03
Beaumont, TXUnavailable$1,206.53
Brazoria, TXUnavailable$1,229.04

27415 rates by state

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

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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
27415 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 27415 rate is calculated

Each of 27415’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 · 27415

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Office or facility?

Work19.50

19.50 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Practice expense14.03

14.03 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Malpractice4.15

4.15 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Adjusted RVUs

37.6800

Conversion factor

$33.4009

Medicare rate

$1,258.55

Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.

Payment rules and modifiers for 27415

27415 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 27415

Knee allograft

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)2Paid.
Co-surgeons (62)1Permitted with supporting documentation.
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 · 27415

Knee allograft

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.

  • 24Unrelated E/M visit by the same physician
  • 79Unrelated procedure (starts its own global period)
  • 58Staged, more extensive, or therapy procedure that was planned
  • 78Unplanned 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

27415 without 50 · national facility

$1,258.55

Knee allograft

27415-50 · Bilateral: 150%

$1,887.83

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

27415 compared with similar codes

Compare codes · National

4 codes, side by side

Office or facility?

  • 27415

    Knee allograft19.5 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 27416

    Knee cartilage graft13.81 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 29867

    Knee allograft17.93 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 27412

    Cartilage implantation24.12 wRVU

    Not priced

How to choose

27416Knee cartilage graft
Both are open knee osteochondral graft procedures. Choose 27415 for donor tissue and 27416 when the graft is harvested from the patient.
29867Knee allograft
29867 describes arthroscopic knee osteochondral allograft transplantation; 27415 is for the open approach.
27412Cartilage implantation
27412 involves implantation of the patient’s cultured cartilage cells. 27415 transplants donor cartilage together with supporting bone.

Codes related to 27415

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

Codes related to 27415
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Used instead
27416Knee cartilage graftOpen osteochondral knee graft using tissue harvested from the patient rather than a donor.No office rate
29867Knee allograftArthroscopic approach to knee osteochondral allograft transplantation.No office rate
27412Cartilage implantationKnee cartilage restoration using implanted autologous chondrocytes rather than donor osteochondral tissue.No office rate
29866Cartilage restorationArthroscopic knee osteochondral autograft procedure, using tissue harvested from the patient.No office rate

27415 billing questions

How is 27415 different from 27416?

27415 is for an osteochondral graft from a donor. 27416 is for an osteochondral graft harvested from the patient.

When should 29867 be considered instead?

29867 describes an arthroscopic approach to knee osteochondral allograft transplantation. Use 27415 for the open procedure documented in the operative report.

What documentation supports reporting 27415?

The operative report should identify the knee defect and its location, describe preparation of the recipient site, and establish that donor osteochondral tissue was implanted through an open approach.

What does the 90-day global period include?

It includes the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care through 90 days after surgery.

How is bilateral 27415 reported?

When the procedure is performed bilaterally, report modifier 50; CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be paid?

Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is not permitted.

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 27415PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 2,880 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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