HCPCS G0518: Implant replacementMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $314.97 for G0518 nationally in the office and $157.99 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $283.52–$407.04.

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

What G0518 covers

G0518 covers a single procedure in which a clinician removes an existing non-biodegradable drug-delivery implant and inserts a replacement. A common setting is an office or outpatient procedure room, where a clinician accesses the subcutaneous implant site, removes the old implant, and places the new one. Subdermal contraceptive implants are a familiar example; the code describes the combined replacement service rather than removal or insertion alone.

Report G0518 when both removal and reinsertion occur in the same procedure. The record should support the existing implant’s removal, the new implant’s placement, and the treated site. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; 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 G0518 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

G0518 rates by state

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

How the G0518 rate is calculated

Each of G0518’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 G0518

The CMS indicators that decide how G0518 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 51

G0518 compared with similar codes

How to choose

G0517Implant removal

G0517 describes removal without replacement. G0518 applies when the clinician removes the existing implant and inserts a new one during the same procedure.

G0516Drug implant insertion

G0516 is for insertion without removal and specifies four or more rods. G0518 is the combined removal-and-reinsertion service.

11983Drug implant

billing code 11983 also describes removal with reinsertion of a non-biodegradable drug-delivery implant. Confirm which code applies under the claim’s coding and payer rules rather than reporting both for the same service.

Codes related to G0518

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