$452.99
36010 represents catheter placement at the vena cava level. Choose 36012 when the catheter is advanced selectively into a second-order or more distal venous branch.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
36012 Venous catheterization Medicare reimbursement rates in Alabama
Reports selective catheter advancement into a second-order or more distal venous branch, such as during adrenal vein sampling or a venous intervention. Compare 36012 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Alabama.
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.
What does Medicare pay for 36012 in Alabama?
Alabama has 1 payment locality in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the payment area shown below, using the same CMS release.
Office / nonfacility
$715.14
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Alabama
One mapped payment locality.
Facility setting
$142.32
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Alabama
One mapped payment locality.
These are locality ranges, not averages or address-specific quotes. A facility-setting amount covers the physician service; it does not include a hospital’s separate bill. Choose a locality below to inspect its calculation, compare other payment areas, or price a percentage of Medicare.
Vascular catheterization
About 36012: Selective venous catheterization, second order or beyond
Reports selective catheter advancement into a second-order or more distal venous branch, such as during adrenal vein sampling or a venous intervention.
This code represents advancing a catheter from a larger vein into a more selective branch at least one level beyond a first-order branch. It may be performed by an interventional radiologist, vascular surgeon, or another physician during venous sampling, venography, or a catheter-based treatment. Adrenal vein sampling is a representative clinical situation: the operator steers the catheter into the adrenal venous branch to obtain a targeted sample.
Choose the code based on the most selective branch reached, not simply the access vein or the length of catheter advancement. The procedure report should identify the target vein and document the catheter position. This code describes catheter placement; report related imaging, sampling, or treatment services only when separately supported and permitted by applicable coding rules. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, CMS pays the highest-valued procedure in full and other procedures at 50%. For a bilateral procedure reported with modifier 50, CMS pays this code at 150%.
CMS billing rules for 36012
- 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 procedure with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU3.42 · 14%
- Practice expense (office) RVU20.16 · 83%
- Malpractice RVU0.62 · 3%
9.9K
Medicare services in 2024 · #1468 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.
36012 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Alabama, from the same CMS release.
$691.38
36011 applies to a first-order venous branch. 36012 requires catheter placement farther into the branching venous anatomy.
$664.32
36014 describes selective catheter placement in an arterial branch. 36012 is for selective placement in the venous system.
Compare 36012 by payment locality
Find the payment area for your service address, then open its rate page for calculation inputs, release history and the percentage-of-Medicare tool. A city may cross payment-area boundaries; the ZIP lookup above helps resolve the location.
1 of 1 payment localities
Alabama →
Office / nonfacility
$715.14
Facility
$142.32
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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 36012 in Alabama.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
4,435
- Code
- 36012
- Physician work
- 3.42
- Practice expense
- 20.16
- Malpractice
- 0.62
GPCI2026.csv
4
- Locality
- Alabama
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.875
- Malpractice
- 0.566
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 3.42 | × 1.000 | 3.4200 |
| Practice expense | 20.16 | × 0.875 | 17.6400 |
| Malpractice | 0.62 | × 0.566 | 0.3509 |
| Total RVUs | 21.4109 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Office / nonfacility rate, Alabama$715.14
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Office / nonfacility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 3.42 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 20.16 | 0.875 |
| Malpractice | 0.62 | 0.566 |
(3.42 × 1 + 20.16 × 0.875 + 0.62 × 0.566) × $33.4009 = $715.14
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 3.42 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 0.56 | 0.875 |
| Malpractice | 0.62 | 0.566 |
(3.42 × 1 + 0.56 × 0.875 + 0.62 × 0.566) × $33.4009 = $142.32
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.
36012 billing questions
When is 36012 used instead of 36011?
Use 36012 when the catheter reaches a second-order or more distal venous branch. Use 36011 for placement in a first-order branch.
How does 36012 differ from 36010?
36010 describes catheter placement in the vena cava. 36012 represents selective advancement from a larger vein into a more distal venous branch.
What documentation supports 36012?
The operative or procedure report should identify the target branch and show that the catheter was advanced beyond a first-order branch. Adrenal vein sampling is one example of a service where this level of selectivity may be documented.
Can venography or sampling be reported with 36012?
36012 represents catheter placement, not the imaging, interpretation, or sampling itself. Report another service only when it is separately supported and permitted by applicable coding rules.
How does CMS handle modifier 50 and multiple procedures?
For a bilateral service reported with modifier 50, CMS pays 36012 at 150%. In a session with multiple procedures, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%.
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.
4,43236005,,Injection ext venography,A,,0.93,6.23,,0.16,,0.16,7.32,1.25,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43336010,,Place catheter in vein,A,,2.13,12.80,,0.31,,0.41,15.34,2.85,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43436011,,Place catheter in vein,A,,3.06,19.81,,0.49,,0.54,23.41,4.09,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43536012,,Place catheter in vein,A,,3.42,20.16,,0.56,,0.62,24.20,4.60,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43636013,,Place catheter in artery,A,,2.46,20.35,,0.50,,0.40,23.21,3.36,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43736014,,Place catheter in artery,A,,2.94,19.06,,0.49,,0.48,22.48,3.91,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,43836015,,Place catheter in artery,A,,3.42,19.87,,0.55,,0.49,23.78,4.46,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1ADDENDUM E. FINAL CY 2026 GEOGRAPHIC PRACTICE COST INDICES (GPCIs) BY STATE AND MEDICARE LOCALITY,,,,,,
2,,,,,,
3Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC),State,Locality Number,Locality Name,2026 PW GPCI (with 1.0 Floor)***,2026 PE GPCI,2026 MP GPCI
410112,AL,00,ALABAMA,1.000,0.875,0.566
502102,AK,01,ALASKA*,1.500,1.065,0.551
603102,AZ,00,ARIZONA,1.000,0.969,0.856
707102,AR,13,ARKANSAS,1.000,0.859,0.515