Billing code 73223: Joint MRIMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $383.11 for 73223 nationally in the office. Local office rates run $337.26–$524.62.

Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.

What 73223 covers

This service covers MRI of an upper extremity joint, such as the shoulder, elbow, wrist, or hand joint, with images obtained before and after contrast administration. A technologist performs the scan, and a radiologist interprets the images. It may be ordered when the clinical question requires assessment of a joint and surrounding structures with both unenhanced and contrast-enhanced imaging, including evaluation for infection, inflammatory disease, or a suspected mass.

Select this code when the study is of a joint and includes both precontrast and postcontrast imaging; a study using only one contrast protocol belongs to a different code. The order and report should identify the joint and side, the clinical indication, and the contrast phases performed. Report one service per side rather than separate units for the precontrast and postcontrast portions. The global service includes the technical and professional work; modifier 26 identifies interpretation only, and modifier TC identifies the technical portion. When multiple diagnostic imaging services are performed, the multiple procedure reduction applies to both components. For bilateral studies, each side is paid 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 73223 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

73223 rates by state

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

How the 73223 rate is calculated

Each of 73223’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.

Payment rules and modifiers for 73223

The CMS indicators that decide how 73223 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

73223 compared with similar codes

How to choose

73221Joint MRI

Choose 73221 when the joint MRI is performed without contrast. This code requires both unenhanced and contrast-enhanced imaging.

73222Joint MRI

Choose 73222 when the joint MRI uses contrast only. Use this code when the protocol includes imaging both before and after contrast.

73220Extremity MRI

73220 covers upper extremity MRI rather than a joint-focused study. Use this code when the imaged target is a joint and both contrast phases are performed.

73225Mr angio upr extr w/o&w/dye

73225 is MR angiography of the upper extremity, focused on vessels. This code is for joint MRI, not vascular imaging.

Codes related to 73223

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

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

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates