Billing code 68130: Conjunctival excisionMedicare rate & RVUs

Report this operation when an ophthalmologist removes a conjunctival lesion together with adjacent sclera, rather than excising conjunctiva alone or destroying the lesion.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities206 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $554.45 for 68130 nationally in the office and $357.72 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $495.09–$732.31.

Medicare rate · 68130

Conjunctival excision

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
4.97
Total RVUs
16.60
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$554.45

Office setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 68130 → · 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 68130 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 68130 covers

An ophthalmologist removes a conjunctival lesion along with adjacent sclera when the lesion involves or requires excision of that underlying tissue. This is an ocular surface operation, commonly performed for a lesion that cannot be adequately removed by excising conjunctiva alone. The operative report should identify the lesion and site and describe removal of the adjacent sclera.

Choose this code based on the tissue removed, not lesion diameter: the defining feature is excision of adjacent sclera. Conjunctival excisions without adjacent sclera are distinguished by lesion size in nearby codes, while destruction uses a different code. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. In a same-session multiple-procedure case, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment is statutorily restricted; 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 68130 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

$495.09 to $732.31

$495.09$613.70$732.31
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

68130 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
Alabama$501.77$329.63
Alaska*$655.84$446.32
Arizona$540.90$350.27
Arkansas$495.09$326.09
Atlanta$563.64$363.76
Austin$575.02$366.88
Bakersfield$588.39$372.78
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys$587.66$376.57
Beaumont$519.75$340.72
Brazoria$549.47$354.51

68130 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.

$495.09

$659.70

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

View every state and territory as a table
68130 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AK$655.841
AL$501.771
AR$495.091
AZ$540.901
CA$587.09–$732.3129
CO$577.531
CT$589.461
DC$631.701
DE$549.431
FL$544.67–$590.263
GA$516.51–$563.642
GU$600.221
HI$600.221
IA$514.521
ID$517.411
IL$529.34–$576.064
IN$520.211
KS$511.821
KY$511.681
LA$510.76–$534.142
MA$574.28–$632.562
MD$559.52–$631.703
ME$519.40–$546.152
MI$523.55–$550.492
MN$555.931
MO$502.34–$536.483
MS$498.831
MT$554.431
NC$524.501
ND$546.521
NE$517.261
NH$568.161
NJ$596.90–$625.842
NM$526.011
NV$552.601
NY$531.73–$647.425
OH$521.931
OK$511.341
OR$548.99–$595.332
PA$522.96–$575.402
PR$558.381
RI$568.541
SC$523.941
SD$545.581
TN$514.141
TX$519.75–$575.028
UT$530.591
VA$544.15–$631.702
VI$558.381
VT$544.101
WA$573.30–$645.462
WI$529.461
WV$511.081
WY$550.981

How the 68130 rate is calculated

Each of 68130’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 · 68130

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 4.97Practice expense 11.23Malpractice 0.40

16.6000 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$554.45

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 68130

68130 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 68130

Conjunctival excision

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)1Bilateral with modifier 50 pays 150% of the fee schedule amount.
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.
Split (54/55/56)0.10/0.70/0.20Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 68130

Conjunctival excision

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 50 · payment effect

With and without the modifier

68130 without 50 · national office

$554.45

Conjunctival excision

68130-50 · Bilateral: 150%

$831.68

Both sides on one line with modifier 50 are paid at 150% of the fee schedule amount (subject to multiple-procedure rules with other procedures).

When to use modifier 50

68130 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

68130 vs 68100 vs 68110 vs 68115 vs 68135: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 68130
    Conjunctival excision · 4.97 wRVU
    $554.45
  • 68100
    Conjunctival biopsy · 1.32 wRVU
    $179.70−$374.75
  • 68110
    Conjunctival excision · 1.77 wRVU
    $237.48−$316.97
  • 68115
    Conjunctival excision · 2.35 wRVU
    $331.00−$223.45
  • 68135
    Lesion destruction · 1.84 wRVU
    $159.66−$394.79

How to choose

68100Conjunctival biopsy
68100 describes conjunctival biopsy for tissue sampling. 68130 describes excision of a lesion together with adjacent sclera.
68110Conjunctival excision
68110 is for excision of a conjunctival lesion under 1 cm without the adjacent-sclera feature. Use 68130 when adjacent sclera is excised.
68115Conjunctival excision
68115 is for excision of a conjunctival lesion over 1 cm without the adjacent-sclera feature. Use 68130 when adjacent sclera is excised.
68135Lesion destruction
68135 describes destruction of a conjunctival lesion. 68130 is used when the lesion and adjacent sclera are surgically excised.

68130 billing questions

When should 68130 be chosen over 68110 or 68115?

Use 68130 when adjacent sclera is excised with the conjunctival lesion. The size-based codes describe conjunctival lesion excision without that scleral component.

What operative documentation supports 68130?

Document the lesion's site and the removal of adjacent sclera, along with the operative work performed. The scleral excision distinguishes this service from conjunctival excision alone.

Can modifier 50 be used for bilateral excision?

CMS identifies this as a bilateral procedure; reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.

What postoperative care is included?

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

How does CMS treat other procedures performed in the same session?

The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and the other procedures are paid at 50%. Assistant-at-surgery payment is statutorily restricted, and co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.

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 68130PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 7,538 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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