FeeBase
Log inGet started
Menu

Billing code 69320: Ear canal reconstructionMedicare rate & RVUs

Reconstructs a narrowed or otherwise abnormal external auditory canal while enlarging its opening through meatoplasty, typically during otologic surgery.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities30 Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $1,426.55 for 69320 nationally in a facility.

Medicare rate · 69320

Ear canal reconstruction

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
16.75
Total RVUs
42.71
Global days
090

National rate · 2026

$1,426.55

Facility setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 69320 → · 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 69320 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 69320 covers

This operation rebuilds the external auditory canal and includes meatoplasty, which enlarges the canal entrance. Otolaryngologists, often with otologic expertise, perform it for conditions such as canal stenosis that require surgical reconstruction. The work is typically done in an operating room rather than as an office procedure; Medicare recorded facility services for this code in 2024.

Report 69320 when the operative record supports canal reconstruction with meatoplasty. Distinguish it from 69310 when reconstruction is performed without meatoplasty. Documentation should identify the canal problem and describe the reconstruction and enlargement of the opening. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. For multiple procedures in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; 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 69320 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

69320 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
AlabamaUnavailable$1,292.98
Alaska*Unavailable$1,720.76
ArizonaUnavailable$1,390.46
ArkansasUnavailable$1,276.26
AtlantaUnavailable$1,457.18
AustinUnavailable$1,463.94
BakersfieldUnavailable$1,480.73
Baltimore/Surr. CntysUnavailable$1,512.17
BeaumontUnavailable$1,350.06
BrazoriaUnavailable$1,406.03

69320 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
69320 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 69320 rate is calculated

Each of 69320’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 · 69320

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 16.75Practice expense 23.52Malpractice 2.44

42.7100 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$1,426.55

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

Payment rules and modifiers for 69320

69320 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.

CMS payment indicators · 69320

Ear canal reconstruction

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)2Paid.
Co-surgeons (62)0Not permitted.
Team surgery (66)0Not permitted.
Professional/technical0Physician service: no professional/technical split.
Split (54/55/56)0.07/0.79/0.14Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care.

Global surgery period · 69320

Ear canal reconstruction

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

69320 without 50 · national facility

$1,426.55

Ear canal reconstruction

69320-50 · Bilateral: 150%

$2,139.83

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

69320 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

69320 vs 69310 vs 69300 vs 69399: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 69320
    Ear canal reconstruction · 16.75 wRVU
    —
  • 69310
    Ear canal reconstruction · 10.7 wRVU
    —
  • 69300
    · 6.44 wRVU
    —
  • 69399
    · 0 wRVU
    —

How to choose

69310Ear canal reconstruction
The key distinction is meatoplasty: 69320 includes enlargement of the canal opening, while 69310 is used when reconstruction is performed without it.
69300Revise external ear
69300 addresses revision of the external ear itself. It is not the canal reconstruction with meatoplasty represented by 69320.
69399Unlisted px external ear
Use 69399 for an external ear procedure that lacks a specific listed code, not for canal reconstruction with meatoplasty that fits 69320.

Codes related to 69320

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

Codes related to 69320
CodeHow it relatesNational office range
Same family
69310Ear canal reconstructionCanal reconstruction without the meatoplasty included in 69320.No office rate
Used instead
69399Unlisted px external earUnlisted external ear procedure when no listed code describes the service performed.No office rate

69320 billing questions

How do I choose between 69320 and 69310?

Use 69320 when the canal reconstruction includes meatoplasty to enlarge the opening. Use 69310 when reconstruction is performed without meatoplasty.

What operative documentation supports 69320?

Document the canal condition, the reconstruction performed, and the meatoplasty that enlarged the canal entrance. The record should make clear that the opening was addressed as part of the operation.

Does the 90-day global period include related postoperative care?

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

How is 69320 handled when another procedure is performed in the same session?

Under the standard multiple procedure reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%.

Can 69320 be reported bilaterally, and may an assistant participate?

For bilateral surgery, report modifier 50; CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available, but 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 69320PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 7,600 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

Did this answer your question about what 69320 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 69320 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 →