Billing code 70030: Eye X-rayMedicare rate & RVUs
Orbital radiographs check for a suspected metallic eye or orbital fragment, including before MRI when a retained metal fragment is a concern.
Medicare pays $32.73 for 70030 nationally in the office. Local office rates run $28.74–$44.60.
Medicare rate · 70030
Eye X-ray
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
- Work RVUs
- 0.18
- Total RVUs
- 0.98
- Global days
- XXX
National rate · 2026
$32.73
Office setting, before claim adjustments.
See every locality for 70030 → · 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
What 70030 covers
This examination uses X-rays of the eye and surrounding orbit to look for a retained radiopaque foreign body, commonly metal after an injury or exposure. It may be ordered before MRI when a history of metal exposure raises concern about an unrecognized fragment. A radiologic technologist obtains the images, and a qualified physician interprets them. The service is performed in settings with diagnostic radiography, including hospital imaging departments and outpatient radiology facilities.
Report this code for the foreign-body examination, not for a broader orbital or facial-bone study selected for a different diagnostic question. The order and report should support the suspected foreign body and identify the side examined. A claim without a component modifier represents the global service; modifier 26 identifies the interpretation, while modifier TC identifies the technical work, equipment, and staff. When both sides are examined, CMS pays each side separately at 100%.
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 70030 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
$28.74 to $44.60
109 of 109 payment localities
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $29.19 | Unavailable |
| Alaska* | $37.13 | Unavailable |
| Arizona | $31.83 | Unavailable |
| Arkansas | $28.74 | Unavailable |
| Atlanta | $33.30 | Unavailable |
| Austin | $34.18 | Unavailable |
| Bakersfield | $35.09 | Unavailable |
| Baltimore/Surr. Cntys | $34.89 | Unavailable |
| Beaumont | $30.34 | Unavailable |
| Brazoria | $32.40 | Unavailable |
| Chicago | $33.77 | Unavailable |
| Chico | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Colorado | $34.33 | Unavailable |
| Connecticut | $35.00 | Unavailable |
| Dallas | $32.59 | Unavailable |
| Dc + Md/Va Suburbs | $37.77 | Unavailable |
| Delaware | $32.38 | Unavailable |
| Detroit | $32.28 | Unavailable |
| East St. Louis | $31.33 | Unavailable |
| El Centro | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Fort Lauderdale | $33.61 | Unavailable |
| Fort Worth | $32.34 | Unavailable |
| Fresno | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Galveston | $32.48 | Unavailable |
| Hanford-Corcoran | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Hawaii, Guam | $36.02 | Unavailable |
| Houston | $32.85 | Unavailable |
| Idaho | $30.30 | Unavailable |
| Indiana | $30.49 | Unavailable |
| Iowa | $30.12 | Unavailable |
| Kansas | $29.90 | Unavailable |
| Kentucky | $29.78 | Unavailable |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (Los Angeles/Orange Cnty) | $37.52 | Unavailable |
| Madera | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Manhattan | $37.73 | Unavailable |
| Merced | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Metropolitan Boston | $37.96 | Unavailable |
| Metropolitan Kansas City | $31.13 | Unavailable |
| Metropolitan Philadelphia | $34.04 | Unavailable |
| Metropolitan St. Louis | $31.48 | Unavailable |
| Miami | $34.82 | Unavailable |
| Minnesota | $33.02 | Unavailable |
| Mississippi | $28.94 | Unavailable |
| Modesto | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Montana** | $32.73 | Unavailable |
| Napa | $41.07 | Unavailable |
| Nebraska | $30.31 | Unavailable |
| Nevada** | $32.65 | Unavailable |
| New Hampshire | $33.72 | Unavailable |
| New Mexico | $30.70 | Unavailable |
| New Orleans | $31.29 | Unavailable |
| North Carolina | $30.75 | Unavailable |
| North Dakota** | $32.34 | Unavailable |
| Northern Nj | $37.33 | Unavailable |
| Nyc Suburbs/Long Island | $38.61 | Unavailable |
| Ohio | $30.47 | Unavailable |
| Oklahoma | $29.80 | Unavailable |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | $37.39 | Unavailable |
| Portland | $35.55 | Unavailable |
| Poughkpsie/N Nyc Suburbs | $35.62 | Unavailable |
| Puerto Rico | $33.01 | Unavailable |
| Queens | $38.15 | Unavailable |
| Redding | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of California | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Florida | $31.92 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Georgia | $30.05 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Illinois | $30.84 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Louisiana | $29.71 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Maine | $30.40 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Maryland | $33.05 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Massachusetts | $34.07 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Michigan | $30.55 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Missouri | $29.12 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of New Jersey | $35.44 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of New York | $31.23 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Oregon | $32.43 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Pennsylvania | $30.56 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Texas | $31.34 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Washington | $34.03 | Unavailable |
| Rhode Island | $33.63 | Unavailable |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | $35.24 | Unavailable |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | $36.89 | Unavailable |
| Salinas | $36.75 | Unavailable |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | $37.71 | Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (Marin Cnty) | $43.62 | Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (San Francisco/San Mateo/Alameda/Contra Costa Cnty) | $43.60 | Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty) | $44.60 | Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (Santa Clara Cnty) | $44.51 | Unavailable |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles | $36.15 | Unavailable |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville | $38.15 | Unavailable |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara | $36.92 | Unavailable |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma | $38.54 | Unavailable |
| Seattle (King Cnty) | $38.83 | Unavailable |
| South Carolina | $30.65 | Unavailable |
| South Dakota** | $32.29 | Unavailable |
| Southern Maine | $32.25 | Unavailable |
| Stockton | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| Suburban Chicago | $33.99 | Unavailable |
| Tennessee | $30.05 | Unavailable |
| Utah | $31.10 | Unavailable |
| Vallejo | $41.04 | Unavailable |
| Vermont | $32.14 | Unavailable |
| Virgin Islands | $33.01 | Unavailable |
| Virginia | $32.09 | Unavailable |
| Visalia | $35.03 | Unavailable |
| West Virginia | $29.61 | Unavailable |
| Wisconsin | $31.18 | Unavailable |
| Wyoming** | $32.56 | Unavailable |
| Yuba City | $35.03 | Unavailable |
70030 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.
$28.74
$39.82
Color shows the midpoint of each state’s locality range.
View every state and territory as a table
| State / territory | Office rate range | Localities |
|---|---|---|
| AK | $37.13 | 1 |
| AL | $29.19 | 1 |
| AR | $28.74 | 1 |
| AZ | $31.83 | 1 |
| CA | $35.03–$44.60 | 29 |
| CO | $34.33 | 1 |
| CT | $35.00 | 1 |
| DC | $37.77 | 1 |
| DE | $32.38 | 1 |
| FL | $31.92–$34.82 | 3 |
| GA | $30.05–$33.30 | 2 |
| GU | $36.02 | 1 |
| HI | $36.02 | 1 |
| IA | $30.12 | 1 |
| ID | $30.30 | 1 |
| IL | $30.84–$33.99 | 4 |
| IN | $30.49 | 1 |
| KS | $29.90 | 1 |
| KY | $29.78 | 1 |
| LA | $29.71–$31.29 | 2 |
| MA | $34.07–$37.96 | 2 |
| MD | $33.05–$37.77 | 3 |
| ME | $30.40–$32.25 | 2 |
| MI | $30.55–$32.28 | 2 |
| MN | $33.02 | 1 |
| MO | $29.12–$31.48 | 3 |
| MS | $28.94 | 1 |
| MT | $32.73 | 1 |
| NC | $30.75 | 1 |
| ND | $32.34 | 1 |
| NE | $30.31 | 1 |
| NH | $33.72 | 1 |
| NJ | $35.44–$37.33 | 2 |
| NM | $30.70 | 1 |
| NV | $32.65 | 1 |
| NY | $31.23–$38.61 | 5 |
| OH | $30.47 | 1 |
| OK | $29.80 | 1 |
| OR | $32.43–$35.55 | 2 |
| PA | $30.56–$34.04 | 2 |
| PR | $33.01 | 1 |
| RI | $33.63 | 1 |
| SC | $30.65 | 1 |
| SD | $32.29 | 1 |
| TN | $30.05 | 1 |
| TX | $30.34–$34.18 | 8 |
| UT | $31.10 | 1 |
| VA | $32.09–$37.77 | 2 |
| VI | $33.01 | 1 |
| VT | $32.14 | 1 |
| WA | $34.03–$38.83 | 2 |
| WI | $31.18 | 1 |
| WV | $29.61 | 1 |
| WY | $32.56 | 1 |
How the 70030 rate is calculated
Each of 70030’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 · 70030
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
Work 0.18Practice expense 0.78Malpractice 0.02
All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 70030
The CMS indicators that decide how 70030 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 70030
Eye X-ray
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | XXX | The global surgery concept doesn’t apply. |
| Multiple procedures | 0 | No multiple-procedure reduction. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 3 | Each side paid at 100% (no 150% cap). |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 0 | Not paid without supporting documentation. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 1 | Diagnostic test with separate professional (26) and technical (TC) components. |
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 26 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
70030 without 26 · national office
$32.73
Eye X-ray
70030-26 · Professional component
$8.68
Pays only the interpretation and report.
70030 compared with similar codes
Compare codes
70030 vs 70200 vs 70540 vs 70542: national Medicare rates
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
How to choose
- 70200Orbit X-ray
- This code targets suspected foreign material in or around the eye. Code 70200 is a broader orbital radiographic examination selected for an orbital diagnostic question.
- 70540MRI
- This is an X-ray examination for foreign-body detection. Code 70540 is MRI of the orbit, face, or neck without contrast and may be considered for other orbital questions after metal concerns are resolved.
- 70542MRI with contrast
- This code uses radiographs to check for a foreign body. Code 70542 is MRI of the orbit, face, or neck with contrast, used for a different diagnostic question after metal concerns are resolved.
70030 billing questions
When should this code be chosen instead of a general orbital X-ray?
Use it when the radiographic examination is specifically directed at detecting a foreign body in or around the eye, such as a suspected metallic fragment. A broader orbital study is selected for a different orbital diagnostic question.
How are the interpretation and imaging work reported?
Report the global service without a component modifier. Modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation, and modifier TC identifies the technical component, including equipment and staff.
How is a bilateral examination paid?
CMS pays each side separately at 100% when both sides are examined. Document the side or sides imaged.
What documentation supports reporting this examination?
The order and imaging report should show that the clinical question was detection of a suspected eye or orbital foreign body and identify the side examined.
Can this code be used for orbital fracture imaging?
Not when the study is a broader orbital or facial-bone examination for suspected fracture. Select the radiographic service that matches the anatomy and diagnostic question.
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
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