Billing code 33285: Rhythm monitorMedicare rate & RVUs

Report 33285 for placing and programming a subcutaneous cardiac rhythm monitor to detect intermittent arrhythmias not captured by shorter-term monitoring.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities71.5K Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $4,012.12 for 33285 nationally in the office and $75.82 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $3,449.29–$5,758.05.

Medicare rate · 33285

Rhythm monitor

Work RVUs
1.49
Total RVUs
120.12
Global days
000

National rate · 2026

$4,012.12

Office setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 33285 →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 33285 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 33285 covers

A cardiologist or electrophysiologist places a small rhythm-monitoring device beneath the skin, commonly in the chest, to record cardiac activity over an extended period. It is often used when a patient has unexplained syncope, intermittent palpitations, or suspected arrhythmia that has not been documented with shorter-term monitoring. The device is subcutaneous rather than a transvenous pacemaker or defibrillator system, and the service includes programming the monitor at insertion.

Report 33285 for the implantation service, supported by documentation of the indication, insertion, and device programming. Routine same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included in its 0-day global period. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, Medicare pays the highest-valued procedure in full and applies the standard multiple-procedure reduction to the others. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. Medicare does not pay for an assistant at surgery, and 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 33285 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

$3449.29 to $5758.05

$3449.29$4603.67$5758.05
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

33285 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
Alabama$3,513.11$68.85
Alaska*$4,288.37$96.22
Arizona$3,887.92$73.65
Arkansas$3,449.29$68.01
Atlanta$4,077.89$78.61
Austin$4,239.96$75.36
Bakersfield$4,387.59$73.41
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys$4,304.14$80.49
Beaumont$3,655.73$73.70
Brazoria$3,974.32$73.45

33285 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.

$3,449.29

$5,072.33

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

View every state and territory as a table
33285 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AK$4,288.371
AL$3,513.111
AR$3,449.291
AZ$3,887.921
CA$4,386.61–$5,758.0529
CO$4,262.901
CT$4,319.811
DC$4,719.321
DE$3,963.751
FL$3,844.35–$4,192.463
GA$3,587.79–$4,077.892
GU$4,548.251
HI$4,548.251
IA$3,669.091
ID$3,689.751
IL$3,675.21–$4,128.414
IN$3,717.561
KS$3,626.921
KY$3,572.611
LA$3,557.32–$3,780.682
MA$4,219.84–$4,779.202
MD$4,059.03–$4,719.323
ME$3,691.54–$3,972.132
MI$3,669.99–$3,882.102
MN$4,118.211
MO$3,466.66–$3,822.523
MS$3,459.881
MT$4,012.091
NC$3,743.101
ND$4,004.971
NE$3,700.461
NH$4,172.581
NJ$4,378.70–$4,648.122
NM$3,686.661
NV$4,014.061
NY$3,811.03–$4,772.225
OH$3,668.531
OK$3,586.751
OR$3,992.74–$4,448.322
PA$3,687.53–$4,177.302
PR$4,055.391
RI$4,142.121
SC$3,710.091
SD$4,004.131
TN$3,647.071
TX$3,655.73–$4,239.968
UT$3,773.871
VA$3,941.43–$4,719.322
VI$4,055.391
VT$3,966.671
WA$4,219.26–$4,909.132
WI$3,837.881
WV$3,499.811
WY$4,008.991

How the 33285 rate is calculated

Each of 33285’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 · 33285

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Work1.49

1.49 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Practice expense118.27

118.27 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Malpractice0.36

0.36 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Adjusted RVUs

120.1200

Conversion factor

$33.4009

Medicare rate

$4,012.12

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 33285

The CMS indicators that decide how 33285 is paid alongside other services.

CMS payment indicators · 33285

Rhythm monitor

RuleCMS valueWhat it means
Global period000Same-day global: pre- and post-op care on the day of the procedure is 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)1Not paid (statutory restriction).
Co-surgeons (62)0Not permitted.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.

What modifiers do to the payment

Modifier 51 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

33285 without 51 · national office

$4,012.12

Rhythm monitor

33285-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$2,006.06

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

33285 compared with similar codes

Compare codes · National

4 codes, side by side

  • 33285

    Rhythm monitor1.49 wRVU

    $4,012.12

  • 33286

    Monitor removal1.46 wRVU

    $128.93−$3,883.19

  • 33270

    Defibrillator implant8.87 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 93291

    Loop recorder check0.36 wRVU

    $48.10−$3,964.02

How to choose

33286Monitor removal
Use 33285 for monitor insertion and programming; use 33286 when the implanted monitor is removed.
33270Defibrillator implant
33270 involves a subcutaneous implantable defibrillator, a therapeutic device; 33285 places a monitor that records rhythm for diagnostic evaluation.
93291Loop recorder check
93291 reports in-person interrogation of an implanted cardiovascular monitor. It is a device assessment service, not implantation.

33285 billing questions

How is 33285 different from 33286?

33285 reports insertion and programming of a subcutaneous cardiac rhythm monitor. Code 33286 reports removal of an implanted monitor.

Is device programming included?

Yes. Programming at insertion is part of 33285; it is not a separate insertion service.

Can modifier 50 be reported?

No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

Medicare does not pay for an assistant at surgery for 33285. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.

What same-day care is included in the global period?

The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care.

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 33285PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 3,905 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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