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Billing code 61760: Depth electrodesMedicare rate & RVUs

Reports stereotactic placement of intracerebral depth electrodes for prolonged seizure monitoring, typically to localize seizure activity before epilepsy surgery.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities131 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $1,554.14 for 61760 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 61760

Depth electrodes

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
21.83
Total RVUs
46.53
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$1,554.14

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 61760 → · 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 61760 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 61760 covers

A neurosurgeon uses stereotactic planning to place depth electrodes into the cerebrum so seizure activity can be recorded from inside the brain over an extended monitoring period. The procedure is commonly performed in a hospital operating room for patients with difficult-to-control focal epilepsy undergoing presurgical evaluation. The electrodes help identify where seizures begin and how they spread, information that can guide later treatment planning.

Report the implantation service, supported by the operative note’s indication and description of the stereotactic placement. The code has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care during that period. 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 multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery; co-surgeons are permitted, while 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 61760 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

61760 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$1,355.96
Alaska*Unavailable$1,814.22
ArizonaUnavailable$1,493.81
ArkansasUnavailable$1,332.00
AtlantaUnavailable$1,626.44
AustinUnavailable$1,550.54
BakersfieldUnavailable$1,497.39
Baltimore/Surr. CntysUnavailable$1,676.49
BeaumontUnavailable$1,485.74
BrazoriaUnavailable$1,487.64

61760 rates by state

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

MEWIVTNHMTNDMNMINYMARIWAIDWYSDIAILINOHPANJCTORNVUTCONEMOKYWVVAMDDECAAZNMKSOKARTNNCSCDCTXLAMSALGAFLAKHI

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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
61760 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 61760 rate is calculated

Each of 61760’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 · 61760

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 21.83Practice expense 15.49Malpractice 9.21

46.5300 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$1,554.14

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 61760

61760 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 61760

Depth electrodes

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)1Not paid (statutory restriction).
Co-surgeons (62)2Permitted.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.
Split (54/55/56)0.11/0.76/0.13Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 61760

Depth electrodes

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

61760 without 51 · national facility

$1,554.14

Depth electrodes

61760-51 · Second procedure: 50%

$777.07

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

61760 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

61760 vs 61750 vs 61751 vs 61781: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 61760
    Depth electrodes · 21.83 wRVU
    —
  • 61750
    Brain biopsy · 19.33 wRVU
    —
  • 61751
    Brain biopsy · 18.32 wRVU
    —
  • 61781
    Cranial navigation · 3.66 wRVU
    —

How to choose

61750Brain biopsy
This code places depth electrodes for prolonged seizure recording. Code 61750 is used to obtain tissue from a brain lesion by stereotactic biopsy.
61751Brain biopsy
Choose this code for depth-electrode placement; code 61751 describes stereotactic brain biopsy with computer-assisted imaging guidance.
61781Cranial navigation
Code 61760 reports implantation of depth electrodes. Code 61781 reports cranial intradural stereotactic navigation, a distinct service that may accompany a procedure when separately reportable.

Codes related to 61760

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

Codes related to 61760
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Often billed with
61781Cranial navigationCranial intradural stereotactic navigation may be reported when a distinct navigation service is documented.No office rate
Used instead
61750Brain biopsyUsed for stereotactic tissue sampling when the diagnostic goal is brain-lesion histology rather than seizure recording.No office rate
61751Brain biopsyUsed for stereotactic brain biopsy with computer-assisted imaging guidance, not depth-electrode monitoring.No office rate

61760 billing questions

When is this code used instead of a stereotactic brain biopsy code?

Use this code when depth electrodes are implanted to record seizure activity for prolonged monitoring. A stereotactic biopsy code is for obtaining brain tissue to evaluate a lesion.

Does this code include the subsequent seizure monitoring?

It reports the stereotactic electrode implantation. The operative and monitoring records should distinguish placement from EEG recording or interpretation services.

Can modifier 50 be used when electrodes are placed on both sides?

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

How does the 90-day global period affect postoperative billing?

The day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included in the global period.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this code. Co-surgeons are permitted, but team surgery is not.

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 61760PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 6,882 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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