FeeBase
Log inGet started
Menu

CPT code 49002: Abdominal reoperation2026 Medicare rate & RVUs

Report reopening a recent abdominal operative incision when the surgeon must return to the abdomen to address a postoperative problem.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities5K Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $974.30 for 49002 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 49002

Abdominal reoperation

Office or facility?

Work RVUs
17.19
Total RVUs
29.17
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$974.30

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 49002 →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 49002 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 49002 covers

The surgeon re-enters the abdomen through a recent operative incision to assess or treat a postoperative problem, such as suspected bleeding or infection. This service is typically performed by a general or other abdominal surgeon in a hospital operating room. It describes a return to the operative site, rather than an initial abdominal exploration in a patient who has not recently undergone laparotomy.

Report the service when the operative note supports reopening the recent incision and describes the reason and work performed. CMS assigns a 90-day 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% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; co-surgeons require 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 49002 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

49002 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$880.22
AlaskaUnavailable$1,214.09
ArizonaUnavailable$945.78
ArkansasUnavailable$868.82
Atlanta, GAUnavailable$1,008.81
Austin, TXUnavailable$974.13
Bakersfield, CAUnavailable$954.17
Baltimore area, MDUnavailable$1,036.09
Beaumont, TXUnavailable$941.00
Brazoria, TXUnavailable$945.20

49002 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
49002 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 49002 rate is calculated

Each of 49002’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 · 49002

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Office or facility?

Work17.19

17.19 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Practice expense7.71

7.71 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Malpractice4.27

4.27 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI

Adjusted RVUs

29.1700

Conversion factor

$33.4009

Medicare rate

$974.30

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 49002

49002 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 49002

Abdominal reoperation

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 · 49002

Abdominal reoperation

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 51 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

49002 without 51 · national facility

$974.30

Abdominal reoperation

49002-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$487.15

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

49002 compared with similar codes

Compare codes · National

4 codes, side by side

Office or facility?

  • 49002

    Abdominal reoperation17.19 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 49000

    Abdominal exploration12.23 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 49014

    Pelvic re-exploration6.56 wRVU

    Not priced

  • 49020

    Abscess drainage26 wRVU

    Not priced

How to choose

49000Abdominal exploration
49002 is for returning through a recent abdominal operative incision. 49000 describes abdominal exploration without that recent-operation context.
49014Pelvic re-exploration
Choose 49014 when the re-exploration is specifically of a pelvic wound; 49002 applies to reopening a recent abdominal operative incision.
49020Abscess drainage
49020 describes open drainage of an abdominal abscess. Use 49002 when the documented service is reopening a recent laparotomy, rather than a focused abscess-drainage procedure.

Codes related to 49002

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

Codes related to 49002
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Used instead
49000Abdominal explorationFor abdominal exploration when the operation is not a return through a recent laparotomy incision.No office rate
49014Pelvic re-explorationFor re-exploration directed to a pelvic wound rather than a general abdominal operative incision.No office rate
49020Abscess drainageFor open drainage of an abdominal abscess when that focused procedure, not re-entry, is the service performed.No office rate

49002 billing questions

How is this different from 49000?

Use 49002 when the surgeon returns through a recent abdominal operative incision. Use 49000 for an exploratory abdominal operation that is not a reopening of a recent laparotomy.

Can the surgeon report a separate procedure performed after reopening?

A distinct procedure may be reportable when the operative documentation supports work beyond the re-entry itself. If multiple procedures are performed in the same session, CMS applies the standard multiple procedure reduction to the lower-valued procedures.

Should modifier 50 be appended?

No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this service; modifier 50 does not describe reopening an abdominal incision.

Can an assistant surgeon or co-surgeon be reported?

Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.

What postoperative care is included in the global period?

The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related 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 49002PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 5,762 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

Did this answer your question about what 49002 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 49002 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 →