No office rate
Choose 26551 for transfer of the great toe; 26553 describes transfer of a single other toe to the hand.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
26551 Toe-to-hand transfer Medicare reimbursement rates in Alaska
Microsurgical transfer of a great toe to the hand is reported when reconstructing a missing or severely damaged thumb or finger. Compare 26551 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Alaska.
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 26551 in Alaska?
Alaska 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
$3682.16
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Alaska*
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.
Hand surgery
About 26551: Great toe transfer to hand
Microsurgical transfer of a great toe to the hand is reported when reconstructing a missing or severely damaged thumb or finger.
This operation moves a great toe to the hand and reconnects its blood supply using microsurgical techniques. It is commonly performed by a hand or plastic surgeon with microsurgical expertise to reconstruct a thumb or finger after traumatic loss or for a congenital absence. The procedure involves work at both the donor foot and recipient hand, often in a hospital operating room.
Report this code for transfer of the great toe, rather than another toe or only a toe joint. The operative report should identify the donor digit, recipient site, indication, and microsurgical transfer performed. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. For bilateral reporting with modifier 50, CMS pays at 150%. An assistant at surgery may be paid; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 26551
- 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 procedure with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery may be paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons not permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU47.27 · 53%
- Practice expense (office) RVU31.71 · 36%
- Malpractice RVU10.10 · 11%
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.
26551 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Alaska, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
26554 describes a double toe-to-hand transfer, while 26551 is for transfer of the great toe.
No office rate
26556 is for transfer of a toe joint to the hand; 26551 describes transfer of the great toe.
No office rate
26550 reconstructs a thumb by repositioning a digit from the hand. Code 26551 transfers the great toe to the hand.
Compare 26551 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
Alaska* →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$3682.16
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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 26551 in Alaska*.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
2,641
- Code
- 26551
- Physician work
- 47.27
- Practice expense
- 31.71
- Malpractice
- 10.10
GPCI2026.csv
5
- Locality
- Alaska*
- Physician work
- 1.500
- Practice expense
- 1.065
- Malpractice
- 0.551
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 47.27 | × 1.500 | 70.9050 |
| Practice expense | 31.71 | × 1.065 | 33.7711 |
| Malpractice | 10.10 | × 0.551 | 5.5651 |
| Total RVUs | 110.2413 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Alaska*$3682.16
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 47.27 | 1.5 |
| Practice expense | 31.71 | 1.065 |
| Malpractice | 10.1 | 0.551 |
(47.27 × 1.5 + 31.71 × 1.065 + 10.1 × 0.551) × $33.4009 = $3682.16
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.
26551 billing questions
When should 26551 be selected instead of 26553?
Use 26551 when the transferred digit is the great toe. Code 26553 describes transfer of a single toe other than the great toe.
How does 26551 differ from 26556?
26551 describes transfer of the great toe to the hand. Code 26556 is for transfer of a toe joint rather than the great toe.
Does the 90-day global period include postoperative care?
Yes. The global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
Can an assistant surgeon be reported?
CMS permits payment for an assistant at surgery. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted for this code.
How is bilateral performance paid?
When performed bilaterally and reported with modifier 50, CMS pays at 150%.
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.
2,63826546,,Repair nonunion hand,A,,10.56,17.16,NA,17.16,,2.02,29.74,29.74,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,63926548,,Reconstruct finger joint,A,,8.01,13.39,NA,13.39,,1.53,22.93,22.93,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,64026550,,Pollicization digit,A,,21.14,20.42,NA,20.42,,4.50,46.06,46.06,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,64126551,,Great toe-hand transfer,A,,47.27,31.71,NA,31.71,,10.10,89.08,89.08,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,64226553,,Single transfer toe-hand,A,,46.97,31.45,NA,31.45,,10.05,88.47,88.47,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,64326554,,Double transfer toe-hand,A,,55.58,35.11,NA,35.11,,11.88,102.57,102.57,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,64426555,,Positional change of finger,A,,16.65,18.99,NA,18.99,,3.55,39.19,39.19,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,0,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
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
801112,CA,54,BAKERSFIELD,1.019,1.096,0.609