FeeBase
Log inGet started
Menu

Billing code 44010: DuodenotomyMedicare rate & RVUs

A surgeon opens the duodenum to inspect its lumen, obtain tissue, or remove an intraluminal foreign body when an incision is required.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities117 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $782.58 for 44010 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 44010

Duodenotomy

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
13.9
Total RVUs
23.43
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$782.58

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 44010 → · 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 44010 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 44010 covers

This service is an operative incision into the duodenum to examine its lumen, take a biopsy, or remove a foreign body. A general or gastrointestinal surgeon typically performs it in a hospital operating room, often during an open abdominal operation. The code is specific to the duodenum; an equivalent incision in the small intestine beyond the duodenum is reported with a different code.

Report 44010 when the operative record supports a duodenal incision for exploration, tissue sampling, or foreign-body removal. Documentation should identify the duodenal site and the purpose and findings of the incision. The code has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care through day 90. 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. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code.

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 44010 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

44010 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$715.55
Alaska*Unavailable$990.09
ArizonaUnavailable$762.75
ArkansasUnavailable$707.37
AtlantaUnavailable$805.38
AustinUnavailable$786.81
BakersfieldUnavailable$779.02
Baltimore/Surr. CntysUnavailable$827.71
BeaumontUnavailable$755.61
BrazoriaUnavailable$764.83

44010 rates by state

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

MEWIVTNHMTNDMNMINYMARIWAIDWYSDIAILINOHPANJCTORNVUTCONEMOKYWVVAMDDECAAZNMKSOKARTNNCSCDCTXLAMSALGAFLAKHI

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
44010 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 44010 rate is calculated

Each of 44010’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 · 44010

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 13.90Practice expense 6.89Malpractice 2.64

23.4300 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$782.58

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 44010

44010 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 44010

Duodenotomy

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)0.09/0.81/0.10Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 44010

Duodenotomy

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

44010 without 51 · national facility

$782.58

Duodenotomy

44010-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$391.29

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

44010 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

44010 vs 44020 vs 44021 vs 44025 vs 44120: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 44010
    Duodenotomy · 13.9 wRVU
    —
  • 44020
    Small-bowel exploration · 15.81 wRVU
    —
  • 44021
    Bowel decompression · 15.9 wRVU
    —
  • 44025
    Colon incision · 16.1 wRVU
    —
  • 44120
    Small-bowel resection · 20.3 wRVU
    —

How to choose

44020Small-bowel exploration
Choose 44010 for a duodenal incision for exploration, biopsy, or foreign-body removal; 44020 applies to the small intestine beyond the duodenum.
44021Bowel decompression
44021 is for small-bowel decompression. It is not the code for a duodenal incision made to explore, obtain a biopsy, or remove a foreign body.
44025Colon incision
44025 concerns an incision into the large bowel; 44010 is limited to the duodenum.
44120Small-bowel resection
44120 describes small-intestine resection with anastomosis. Use 44010 when the duodenum is incised for exploration, biopsy, or foreign-body removal rather than resected.

Codes related to 44010

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

Codes related to 44010
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Same family
44020Small-bowel explorationCorresponding exploratory, biopsy, or foreign-body incision for small intestine beyond the duodenum.No office rate
Used instead
44021Bowel decompressionSmall-bowel decompression through an incision, rather than duodenal exploration, biopsy, or foreign-body removal.No office rate
44025Colon incisionAn analogous incision service involving the large bowel rather than the duodenum.No office rate
44120Small-bowel resectionSmall-intestine resection with anastomosis when bowel removal, rather than a duodenotomy, is performed.No office rate

44010 billing questions

How is 44010 different from 44020?

44010 is for an incision into the duodenum. Use 44020 for the corresponding exploration, biopsy, or foreign-body removal incision in small intestine beyond the duodenum.

Is 44010 the right code when the duodenum is opened for decompression?

No. 44010 describes a duodenal incision for exploration, biopsy, or foreign-body removal. Code 44021 describes small-bowel decompression, a different service.

Can the incision and closure be billed separately?

The incision and its closure are part of the reported operative service. The record should establish the duodenal site and the reason the incision was made.

Should modifier 50 be appended?

No. Bilateral adjustment is inappropriate for this code and its anatomy.

How does the multiple-procedure reduction affect 44010?

For procedures performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction.

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 44010PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 5,325 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

Did this answer your question about what 44010 pays?

Tell us what you were actually trying to work out. We’ll answer you directly, or build the page that does.

Fee sheets

Put 44010 and the rest of your codes on one sheet

Build a fee sheet from your own code list at your locality, put your payer contracts beside Medicare, and see what changed each quarter.

Build my fee sheetOr price your code list free →