No office rate
Use 63251 for revision of a spinal cord vascular malformation at the thoracic level; use 63252 for the thoracolumbar region.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
63252 Spinal vascular surgery Medicare reimbursement rates in Alabama
Reports operative revision of a spinal cord vascular malformation in the thoracolumbar region, such as corrective surgery for a residual or recurrent lesion. Compare 63252 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 63252 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
No supported rate
Facility setting
$2532.95
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.
Neurosurgery
About 63252: Thoracolumbar spinal vascular malformation revision
Reports operative revision of a spinal cord vascular malformation in the thoracolumbar region, such as corrective surgery for a residual or recurrent lesion.
This code describes operative revision of a vascular malformation involving the spinal cord in the thoracolumbar region. Neurosurgeons typically perform the procedure in a hospital operating room, often when further operative treatment is needed for a residual or recurrent lesion, such as a spinal cord arteriovenous malformation. The operative report should make clear that the target is a spinal cord vascular malformation and describe the revision work and anatomic level.
Select this code for the thoracolumbar region, rather than the cervical or thoracic options in the same revision family. Medicare treats it as major surgery: the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included. If multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. An assistant at surgery may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 63252
- 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 RVU43.51 · 50%
- Practice expense (office) RVU25.06 · 29%
- Malpractice RVU18.37 · 21%
63
Medicare services in 2024 · #5214 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.
63252 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Alabama, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
This code concerns biopsy or excision of a thoracolumbar intradural intramedullary lesion. Choose 63252 when the operative target is revision of a spinal cord vascular malformation.
No office rate
This code concerns excision of a thoracic extradural intraspinal lesion. It is not the code for revising a spinal cord vascular malformation.
Compare 63252 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
Unavailable
Facility
$2532.95
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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 63252 in Alabama.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
7,042
- Code
- 63252
- Physician work
- 43.51
- Practice expense
- 25.06
- Malpractice
- 18.37
GPCI2026.csv
4
- Locality
- Alabama
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.875
- Malpractice
- 0.566
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 43.51 | × 1.000 | 43.5100 |
| Practice expense | 25.06 | × 0.875 | 21.9275 |
| Malpractice | 18.37 | × 0.566 | 10.3974 |
| Total RVUs | 75.8349 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Alabama$2532.95
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 43.51 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 25.06 | 0.875 |
| Malpractice | 18.37 | 0.566 |
(43.51 × 1 + 25.06 × 0.875 + 18.37 × 0.566) × $33.4009 = $2532.95
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.
63252 billing questions
How is 63252 distinguished from 63251?
63252 is for revision in the thoracolumbar region; 63251 is the thoracic-level sibling. The operative report should identify the treated region.
What documentation supports reporting a revision?
Document the spinal cord vascular malformation, its anatomic level, and the operative work performed to revise it. The note should distinguish this work from biopsy or excision of a different type of spinal lesion.
Is modifier 50 appropriate for bilateral work?
No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code.
Are related postoperative visits included?
Yes. The major-surgery global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
How are other procedures paid when performed in the same session?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures subject to the standard multiple procedure reduction are paid at 50%.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
An assistant at surgery may be paid. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is not permitted.
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.
7,03963200,,Release spinal cord lumbar,A,,20.90,16.33,NA,16.33,,8.73,45.96,45.96,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04063250,,Revise spinal cord vsls crvl,A,,42.76,24.05,NA,24.05,,18.05,84.86,84.86,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04163251,,Revise spinal cord vsls thrc,A,,43.52,25.07,NA,25.07,,18.37,86.96,86.96,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04263252,,Revise spine cord vsl thrlmb,A,,43.51,25.06,NA,25.06,,18.37,86.94,86.94,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04363265,,Excise intraspinl lesion crv,A,,23.22,16.09,NA,16.09,,9.00,48.31,48.31,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04463266,,Excise intrspinl lesion thrc,A,,24.06,16.33,NA,16.33,,9.25,49.64,49.64,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
7,04563267,,Excise intrspinl lesion lmbr,A,,18.96,13.93,NA,13.93,,6.71,39.60,39.60,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,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