Billing code 92284: Dark adaptationMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $33.07 for 92284 nationally in the office. Local office rates run $29.49–$43.97.

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

What 92284 covers

This examination measures how visual sensitivity recovers after the eyes move from light into darkness. Ophthalmologists and optometrists may use it when a patient reports difficulty seeing in dim conditions or when findings raise concern about retinal rod function. Testing is generally performed in an eye-care office with dark-adaptation equipment; the service includes interpretation and a report of the diagnostic findings.

Report 92284 for diagnostic testing, rather than the screening measurement represented by 92288. Documentation should identify the clinical reason for testing and include the results and interpretation. The code may be billed globally, or the professional interpretation and technical testing may be billed separately with modifiers 26 and TC. When multiple ophthalmic diagnostic procedures are performed, the Medicare multiple-procedure reduction applies to the technical component. The code is priced as bilateral, so modifier 50 does not increase payment.

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 92284 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

92284 rates by state

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

How the 92284 rate is calculated

Each of 92284’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 92284

The CMS indicators that decide how 92284 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

92284 compared with similar codes

How to choose

92288Scr dark adaptation meas i&r

92284 is the diagnostic dark-adaptation examination; 92288 is the screening measurement. The clinical purpose distinguishes the two.

92273Full-field ERG

92273 records full-field retinal electrical activity. Choose it when that response is being tested, rather than recovery of visual sensitivity in darkness.

92274Multifocal ERG

92274 evaluates multifocal retinal electrical responses across the retina. It is not a dark-adaptation measurement.

92283Color vision exam

92283 is an extended color-vision examination; 92284 evaluates adaptation to darkness and related visual sensitivity.

Codes related to 92284

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