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Billing code 33917: Pulmonary artery repairMedicare rate & RVUs

Reports operative repair of a pulmonary artery, commonly to address stenosis, when the surgeon directly reconstructs the vessel with or without a patch.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities47 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $1,389.48 for 33917 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 33917

Pulmonary artery repair

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
24.67
Total RVUs
41.60
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$1,389.48

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 33917 → · 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 33917 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 33917 covers

A cardiothoracic or congenital heart surgeon uses this service to reconstruct a pulmonary artery, often to relieve a narrowed segment. The repair may use the patient’s own tissue or a patch graft. It is typically performed in a hospital operating room as part of surgery for pulmonary artery disease, including congenital narrowing. The operative report should identify the artery and lesion and describe the repair performed.

Select this code for direct pulmonary artery repair, not an operation whose principal work is unifocalizing collateral vessels or removing emboli. Document the site, reason for repair, and whether reconstruction or patching was performed. CMS assigns a 90-day major-surgery global period, including 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. An assistant at surgery 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 33917 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

33917 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$1,254.70
Alaska*Unavailable$1,731.62
ArizonaUnavailable$1,348.51
ArkansasUnavailable$1,238.39
AtlantaUnavailable$1,439.37
AustinUnavailable$1,388.25
BakersfieldUnavailable$1,358.41
Baltimore/Surr. CntysUnavailable$1,477.96
BeaumontUnavailable$1,342.53
BrazoriaUnavailable$1,347.21

33917 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
33917 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 33917 rate is calculated

Each of 33917’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 · 33917

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 24.67Practice expense 10.72Malpractice 6.21

41.6000 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$1,389.48

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 33917

33917 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 33917

Pulmonary artery repair

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)1Permitted with supporting documentation.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.
Split (54/55/56)0.09/0.84/0.07Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 33917

Pulmonary artery repair

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

33917 without 51 · national facility

$1,389.48

Pulmonary artery repair

33917-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$694.74

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

33917 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

33917 vs 33925 vs 33926 vs 33910 vs 33915: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 33917
    Pulmonary artery repair · 24.67 wRVU
    —
  • 33925
    Pulmonary artery repair · 30.52 wRVU
    —
  • 33926
    Pulmonary artery repair · 43.61 wRVU
    —
  • 33910
    Pulmonary embolectomy · 47 wRVU
    —
  • 33915
    Pulmonary embolectomy · 24.33 wRVU
    —

How to choose

33925Pulmonary artery repair
33925 describes pulmonary artery unifocalization without cardiopulmonary bypass. Choose 33917 for direct repair of a pulmonary artery rather than unifocalization.
33926Pulmonary artery repair
33926 describes pulmonary artery unifocalization with cardiopulmonary bypass. It is not the direct pulmonary artery repair represented by 33917.
33910Pulmonary embolectomy
33910 is for removal of pulmonary artery emboli. Use 33917 when the operative work is repair of the artery, not embolus removal.
33915Pulmonary embolectomy
33915 is also an embolus-removal code, not a direct artery repair code. The operative objective distinguishes it from 33917.

Codes related to 33917

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

Codes related to 33917
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Same family
33925Pulmonary artery repairUnifocalization without cardiopulmonary bypass; a different pulmonary artery operation.No office rate
33926Pulmonary artery repairUnifocalization with cardiopulmonary bypass; not direct stenosis repair.No office rate

33917 billing questions

When is this code appropriate instead of 33925 or 33926?

Use 33917 for direct pulmonary artery repair. Codes 33925 and 33926 describe pulmonary artery unifocalization, with the code choice reflecting whether cardiopulmonary bypass is used.

Is modifier 50 appropriate for repair of both pulmonary arteries?

No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code. Report the operation according to the applicable coding instructions and documented work, not by adding modifier 50.

Does the code include related postoperative visits?

Yes. The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.

What operative documentation supports reporting 33917?

The report should identify the pulmonary artery and the lesion being treated, and describe the direct repair or patch reconstruction. It should make clear that the procedure was not unifocalization or embolus removal.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

An assistant at surgery may be paid. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is not permitted under the CMS facts for this code.

How does CMS handle another procedure performed in the same session?

The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, while other procedures are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction when performed in the same session.

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 33917PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 4,117 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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