61343 describes suboccipital decompression that includes cervical laminectomy for the medulla and spinal cord. Consider 61345 for a different posterior fossa decompression that does not match that specific service.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
61343 in Austin
Office / nonfacility
Not available in this setting
Base rate per service
Facility setting
$2103.44
Base rate per service
Amounts below use the non-QP conversion factor for participating physicians. These are base physician payments before claim-level adjustments, not patient costs or total hospital charges.
Neurosurgery
About 61343: Suboccipital decompression with cervical laminectomy
Reports suboccipital and upper cervical bone removal to decompress the medulla and spinal cord, commonly for crowding at the foramen magnum.
This operation removes bone at the base of the skull and from the upper cervical spine to relieve pressure on the lower brainstem and spinal cord. Neurosurgeons commonly perform it for symptomatic Chiari malformation with crowding at the foramen magnum. It is generally an operating-room procedure in a hospital or other surgical facility.
Select this code when the operative report supports posterior fossa decompression that includes cervical laminectomy for the cervicomedullary region. The report should identify the decompression performed and the relevant anatomy; the cervical bone removal is part of this operative service, not a separate laminectomy for the same decompression. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 61343
- Global period
- Major surgery with a 90-day global period: the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included.
- Multiple procedures
- Standard multiple procedure reduction: the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50% when performed in the same session.
- Bilateral procedures
- Bilateral adjustment does not apply; the descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery may be paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons paid only with supporting documentation.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU31.06 · 49%
- Practice expense (office) RVU19.43 · 31%
- Malpractice RVU12.75 · 20%
248
Medicare services in 2024 · #4146 by national volume
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.
61343 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Austin, from the same CMS release.
61340 is subtemporal decompression, not decompression at the foramen magnum with upper cervical bone removal.
63045 describes cervical spinal decompression for a cervical spine condition. Use 61343 when the cervical laminectomy is part of the suboccipital cervicomedullary decompression.
The same code, a different location
How does Austin compare?
61343 across payment areas
Same release and payment basis · bars start at $0
Austin · This locality
Unavailable
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Unavailable
No comparable rate is available in this setting.
Other payment areas listed in Texas appear first, followed by selected cross-country examples. The chart compares amounts, not distance.
The code’s RVUs stay the same in these comparisons. Geographic adjustments to work, practice expense and malpractice change the dollar amount. A city name alone may not identify the payment area for a service address.
Compare all 108 other payment areas
Rest Of Texas
Texas · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2037.87
No comparable office rate is available.
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (Los Angeles/Orange Cnty)
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2130.48
No comparable office rate is available.
Dc + Md/Va Suburbs
District of Columbia · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2331.93
No comparable office rate is available.
Miami
Florida · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2790.02
No comparable office rate is available.
Chicago
Illinois · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2674.27
No comparable office rate is available.
Manhattan
New York · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2533.36
No comparable office rate is available.
Alaska*
Alaska · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2481.96
No comparable office rate is available.
Alabama
Alabama · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1846.33
No comparable office rate is available.
Arkansas
Arkansas · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1814.22
No comparable office rate is available.
Arizona
Arizona · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2030.83
No comparable office rate is available.
Bakersfield
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2027.77
No comparable office rate is available.
Chico
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
El Centro
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1996.74
No comparable office rate is available.
Fresno
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Hanford-Corcoran
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Madera
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Merced
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Modesto
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Napa
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2174.48
No comparable office rate is available.
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2098.89
No comparable office rate is available.
Redding
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of California
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2130.65
No comparable office rate is available.
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2057.80
No comparable office rate is available.
Salinas
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2050.02
No comparable office rate is available.
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2075.55
No comparable office rate is available.
San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (Marin Cnty)
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2246.52
No comparable office rate is available.
San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (San Francisco/San Mateo/Alameda/Contra Costa Cnty)
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2232.04
No comparable office rate is available.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty)
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2315.64
No comparable office rate is available.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (Santa Clara Cnty)
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2256.44
No comparable office rate is available.
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2022.52
No comparable office rate is available.
Santa Cruz-Watsonville
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2075.99
No comparable office rate is available.
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2051.45
No comparable office rate is available.
Santa Rosa-Petaluma
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2093.76
No comparable office rate is available.
Stockton
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Vallejo
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2153.62
No comparable office rate is available.
Visalia
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Yuba City
California · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1994.61
No comparable office rate is available.
Colorado
Colorado · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2072.99
No comparable office rate is available.
Connecticut
Connecticut · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2272.42
No comparable office rate is available.
Delaware
Delaware · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2066.66
No comparable office rate is available.
Fort Lauderdale
Florida · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2464.81
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Florida
Florida · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2297.93
No comparable office rate is available.
Atlanta
Georgia · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2211.37
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Georgia
Georgia · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2123.95
No comparable office rate is available.
Hawaii, Guam
Hawaii · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2021.90
No comparable office rate is available.
Iowa
Iowa · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1800.32
No comparable office rate is available.
Idaho
Idaho · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1835.93
No comparable office rate is available.
East St. Louis
Illinois · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2492.18
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Illinois
Illinois · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2295.57
No comparable office rate is available.
Suburban Chicago
Illinois · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2465.82
No comparable office rate is available.
Indiana
Indiana · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1846.00
No comparable office rate is available.
Kansas
Kansas · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1838.74
No comparable office rate is available.
Kentucky
Kentucky · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2004.04
No comparable office rate is available.
New Orleans
Louisiana · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2131.90
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Louisiana
Louisiana · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2019.75
No comparable office rate is available.
Metropolitan Boston
Massachusetts · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2233.86
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Massachusetts
Massachusetts · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2076.82
No comparable office rate is available.
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys
Maryland · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2277.18
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Maryland
Maryland · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2095.51
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Maine
Maine · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1899.38
No comparable office rate is available.
Southern Maine
Maine · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1949.29
No comparable office rate is available.
Detroit
Michigan · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2381.70
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Michigan
Michigan · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2110.75
No comparable office rate is available.
Minnesota
Minnesota · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1831.29
No comparable office rate is available.
Metropolitan Kansas City
Missouri · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2062.89
No comparable office rate is available.
Metropolitan St. Louis
Missouri · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2081.97
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Missouri
Missouri · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2011.64
No comparable office rate is available.
Mississippi
Mississippi · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1910.91
No comparable office rate is available.
Montana**
Montana · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2111.42
No comparable office rate is available.
North Carolina
North Carolina · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1915.06
No comparable office rate is available.
North Dakota**
North Dakota · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1859.31
No comparable office rate is available.
Nebraska
Nebraska · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1797.42
No comparable office rate is available.
New Hampshire
New Hampshire · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2085.65
No comparable office rate is available.
Northern Nj
New Jersey · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2310.43
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of New Jersey
New Jersey · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2254.78
No comparable office rate is available.
New Mexico
New Mexico · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2144.01
No comparable office rate is available.
Nevada**
Nevada · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2041.80
No comparable office rate is available.
Nyc Suburbs/Long Island
New York · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2666.29
No comparable office rate is available.
Poughkpsie/N Nyc Suburbs
New York · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2310.04
No comparable office rate is available.
Queens
New York · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2485.01
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of New York
New York · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1953.34
No comparable office rate is available.
Ohio
Ohio · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2059.22
No comparable office rate is available.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1947.87
No comparable office rate is available.
Portland
Oregon · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2091.89
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Oregon
Oregon · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1983.20
No comparable office rate is available.
Metropolitan Philadelphia
Pennsylvania · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2239.75
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2035.63
No comparable office rate is available.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2113.02
No comparable office rate is available.
Rhode Island
Rhode Island · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2107.41
No comparable office rate is available.
South Carolina
South Carolina · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1999.07
No comparable office rate is available.
South Dakota**
South Dakota · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1829.50
No comparable office rate is available.
Tennessee
Tennessee · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1856.04
No comparable office rate is available.
Utah
Utah · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2029.90
No comparable office rate is available.
Virginia
Virginia · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1976.04
No comparable office rate is available.
Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2113.02
No comparable office rate is available.
Vermont
Vermont · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1895.41
No comparable office rate is available.
Rest Of Washington
Washington · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2058.37
No comparable office rate is available.
Seattle (King Cnty)
Washington · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2233.53
No comparable office rate is available.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$1790.32
No comparable office rate is available.
West Virginia
West Virginia · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2210.80
No comparable office rate is available.
Wyoming**
Wyoming · 61343
Office
Unavailable
Facility
$2001.55
No comparable office rate is available.
See how rates vary across the country
61343 · Office / nonfacility · Non-QP. Choose a state to explore its payment localities. A range means the amount varies within that state.
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 all state and territory rates as a table
| State / territory | Rate range | Localities |
|---|---|---|
| AK | No published base rate | 1 |
| AL | No published base rate | 1 |
| AR | No published base rate | 1 |
| AZ | No published base rate | 1 |
| CA | No published base rate | 29 |
| CO | No published base rate | 1 |
| CT | No published base rate | 1 |
| DC | No published base rate | 1 |
| DE | No published base rate | 1 |
| FL | No published base rate | 3 |
| GA | No published base rate | 2 |
| GU | No published base rate | 1 |
| HI | No published base rate | 1 |
| IA | No published base rate | 1 |
| ID | No published base rate | 1 |
| IL | No published base rate | 4 |
| IN | No published base rate | 1 |
| KS | No published base rate | 1 |
| KY | No published base rate | 1 |
| LA | No published base rate | 2 |
| MA | No published base rate | 2 |
| MD | No published base rate | 3 |
| ME | No published base rate | 2 |
| MI | No published base rate | 2 |
| MN | No published base rate | 1 |
| MO | No published base rate | 3 |
| MS | No published base rate | 1 |
| MT | No published base rate | 1 |
| NC | No published base rate | 1 |
| ND | No published base rate | 1 |
| NE | No published base rate | 1 |
| NH | No published base rate | 1 |
| NJ | No published base rate | 2 |
| NM | No published base rate | 1 |
| NV | No published base rate | 1 |
| NY | No published base rate | 5 |
| OH | No published base rate | 1 |
| OK | No published base rate | 1 |
| OR | No published base rate | 2 |
| PA | No published base rate | 2 |
| PR | No published base rate | 1 |
| RI | No published base rate | 1 |
| SC | No published base rate | 1 |
| SD | No published base rate | 1 |
| TN | No published base rate | 1 |
| TX | No published base rate | 8 |
| UT | No published base rate | 1 |
| VA | No published base rate | 2 |
| VI | No published base rate | 1 |
| VT | No published base rate | 1 |
| WA | No published base rate | 2 |
| WI | No published base rate | 1 |
| WV | No published base rate | 1 |
| WY | No published base rate | 1 |
Where does this rate apply?
Austin is a Medicare payment area. Our Census mapping connects it to 31 cities and communities in Texas, including the examples shown here.
Some communities span more than one payment area. Follow a city link to compare all of its mapped areas, or check the service-location ZIP above for an address-level starting point.
- 61343 in Austin
Multiple payment areas
- 61343 in Barton Creek
- 61343 in Bee Cave
- 61343 in Briarcliff
- 61343 in Cedar Park
Multiple payment areas
- 61343 in Creedmoor
Multiple payment areas
- 61343 in Elgin
Multiple payment areas
- 61343 in Garfield
Use this rate
What is a percentage of Medicare worth?
Turn a percentage into dollars for 61343 in Austin. This uses the base rate on this page, so the locality and release stay consistent.
Reference amount per service
$2313.78
$2103.44 × 110% = $2313.78
A contract may specify another Medicare year or additional adjustments. This is percentage arithmetic on the displayed base rate, not a claim adjudication.
Working with a whole code list?
Compare an offer across your annual code mix, including an older Medicare schedule or flat per-code rates.
How this local rate is calculated
Each RVU component is multiplied by its own geographic practice cost index (GPCI). The three adjusted components are added, then multiplied by the conversion factor. These are the inputs used for 61343 in Austin.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
6,771
- Code
- 61343
- Physician work
- 31.06
- Practice expense
- 19.43
- Malpractice
- 12.75
GPCI2026.csv
96
- Locality
- Austin
- Physician work
- 1.002
- Practice expense
- 1.058
- Malpractice
- 0.886
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 31.06 | × 1.002 | 31.1221 |
| Practice expense | 19.43 | × 1.058 | 20.5569 |
| Malpractice | 12.75 | × 0.886 | 11.2965 |
| Total RVUs | 62.9756 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Austin$2103.44
Open 61343 in the RVU calculator →
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 31.06 | 1.002 |
| Practice expense | 19.43 | 1.058 |
| Malpractice | 12.75 | 0.886 |
(31.06 × 1.002 + 19.43 × 1.058 + 12.75 × 0.886) × $33.4009 = $2103.44
The office and facility calculations use their respective practice-expense RVUs. The facility amount here is the physician fee, not a separate hospital or facility bill.
How this rate has changed
61343 · Office / nonfacility
Rate unavailable
Effective 2026-10-01
A rate is unavailable in one of these releases, so a change cannot be calculated.
One bar per available release, ordered by effective date. Missing rates remain gaps. These comparisons hold the code, setting and locality identifiers constant; they do not isolate which policy or input caused a change.
What changed, release by release
Explore release dates and calculate this code in an earlier period →
Each row uses the accepted CMS release effective on that date and the same contractor and locality identifiers. Missing rates stay visible. Historical boundaries may differ; verify the service address for an older claim.
Inspect every release and its CMS source
| Effective from | Office / nonfacility | Facility | CMS release |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-01 | Not available in this setting | $2103.44 | RVU26D |
| 2026-07-01 | Not available in this setting | $2103.44 | RVU26C |
| 2026-04-01 | Not available in this setting | $2103.44 | RVU26B |
| 2026-01-01 | Not available in this setting | $2103.44 | RVU26A |
| 2025-10-01 | Not available in this setting | $2162.23 | RVU25D |
| 2025-07-01 | Not available in this setting | $2162.23 | RVU25C |
| 2025-04-01 | Not available in this setting | $2162.23 | RVU25B |
| 2025-01-01 | Not available in this setting | $2162.23 | RVU25A |
61343 billing questions
When is 61343 preferable to another posterior fossa decompression code?
Use 61343 when the operative service is suboccipital decompression with cervical laminectomy to relieve pressure on the medulla and spinal cord. A different posterior fossa decompression may be classified under 61345 when it does not match that service.
Can the cervical laminectomy be billed separately?
The cervical bone removal performed as part of this cervicomedullary decompression is included in the service. Do not report a separate laminectomy for the same decompression.
Should modifier 50 be used for a bilateral procedure?
No. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code.
What postoperative care is included in the global period?
The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is not permitted.
How does Medicare handle other procedures performed in the same session?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% multiple-procedure reduction.
Where these rates come from
FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense, and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indices and the applicable conversion factor. Unavailable or separately priced services are labeled rather than assigned a made-up amount.
Source: RVU26D. Effective 2026-10-01 through the day before 2027-01-01.
