Billing code 52310: Cystoscopic removalMedicare rate & RVUs

Reports simple cystoscopic removal of a foreign body, calculus, or ureteral stent located in the urethra or bladder.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities94.1K Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $298.60 for 52310 nationally in the office and $134.61 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $265.27–$389.31.

Medicare rate · 52310

Cystoscopic removal

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
2.74
Total RVUs
8.94
Global days
000

National rate · 2026

$298.60

Office setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 52310 → · 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 52310 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 52310 covers

A urologist typically performs this brief endoscopic service in an office, ambulatory surgery center, or hospital setting. Using a cystoscope, the physician removes a foreign body, small calculus, or ureteral stent from the urethra or bladder. A common use is removal of a ureteral stent that has reached the bladder. The service is limited to simple removal; a complicated removal belongs to the related higher-level code.

Choose the code from the documented site and complexity, and record the item removed and the work performed. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When related endoscopies are performed together, endoscopy family pricing affects payment. The bilateral adjustment is inappropriate for this service. CMS does not pay 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 52310 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

$265.27 to $389.31

$265.27$327.29$389.31
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

52310 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
Alabama$269.00$125.50
Alaska*$351.64$176.99
Arizona$290.83$131.91
Arkansas$265.27$124.39
Atlanta$304.42$137.79
Austin$308.73$135.22
Bakersfield$314.37$134.62
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys$317.16$141.19
Beaumont$280.19$130.96
Brazoria$294.94$132.41

52310 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.

$265.27

$351.64

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

View every state and territory as a table
52310 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AK$351.641
AL$269.001
AR$265.271
AZ$290.831
CA$313.31–$389.3129
CO$309.551
CT$317.981
DC$339.631
DE$295.511
FL$296.07–$324.993
GA$279.85–$304.422
GU$320.271
HI$320.271
IA$274.771
ID$276.661
IL$288.40–$315.794
IN$278.181
KS$273.911
KY$275.931
LA$275.67–$288.732
MA$307.97–$338.882
MD$300.87–$339.633
ME$278.45–$292.412
MI$283.18–$300.032
MN$295.801
MO$271.37–$289.273
MS$268.351
MT$298.581
NC$281.191
ND$291.461
NE$276.111
NH$305.101
NJ$321.38–$336.402
NM$284.831
NV$296.791
NY$285.28–$351.635
OH$281.731
OK$275.051
OR$294.25–$318.642
PA$281.95–$310.572
PR$300.571
RI$305.481
SC$281.981
SD$290.621
TN$275.291
TX$280.19–$308.738
UT$285.671
VA$291.75–$339.632
VI$300.571
VT$290.711
WA$307.26–$345.262
WI$282.091
WV$278.231
WY$295.481

How the 52310 rate is calculated

Each of 52310’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 · 52310

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 2.74Practice expense 5.84Malpractice 0.36

8.9400 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$298.60

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 52310

The CMS indicators that decide how 52310 is paid alongside other services.

CMS payment indicators · 52310

Cystoscopic removal

RuleCMS valueWhat it means
Global period000Same-day global: pre- and post-op care on the day of the procedure is included.
Multiple procedures3Endoscopy family rules apply.
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

52310 without 51 · national office

$298.60

Cystoscopic removal

52310-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$149.30

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

52310 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

52310 vs 52315 vs 52320 vs 52317 vs 52332: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 52310
    Cystoscopic removal · 2.74 wRVU
    $298.60
  • 52315
    Cystoscopic removal · 5.07 wRVU
    $457.59+$158.99
  • 52320
    Ureteral stone removal · 4.57 wRVU
    —
  • 52317
    Bladder stone removal · 6.54 wRVU
    $868.42+$569.82
  • 52332
    Ureteral stent · 2.75 wRVU
    $372.75+$74.15

How to choose

52315Cystoscopic removal
Both codes cover cystoscopic removal from the urethra or bladder; 52310 is for simple removal, while 52315 is for complicated removal.
52320Ureteral stone removal
Use 52320 for endoscopic removal of a ureteral calculus. Use 52310 for simple removal of an item located in the urethra or bladder.
52317Bladder stone removal
52317 covers transurethral bladder-stone treatment by cystolitholapaxy; 52310 is for simple removal of a bladder or urethral calculus.
52332Ureteral stent
52332 covers placement of an indwelling ureteral stent. This code covers removal of an existing stent from the urethra or bladder.

52310 billing questions

When should 52315 be used instead?

Use 52315 when the removal is documented as complicated. This code describes simple removal from the urethra or bladder.

Can this code be used to remove a ureteral stone?

This code covers removal from the urethra or bladder. For a ureteral calculus removed endoscopically, compare the procedure with 52320 or the applicable ureteroscopic stone-removal code.

Does removal of a ureteral stent qualify?

Yes, when the stent is removed from the urethra or bladder by cystoscopy. Document the stent removal and the work performed.

Can modifier 50 be reported?

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

What postoperative care is included?

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

How is payment affected when another related endoscopy is performed?

CMS endoscopy family pricing applies when related endoscopies are performed together, affecting payment for the combined 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 52310PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 6,134 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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