No office rate
The target territories overlap, but the approach differs: 37217 is retrograde and 37218 is antegrade.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
37217 Carotid stenting Medicare reimbursement rates in Alaska
Reports retrograde endovascular stenting of an innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery lesion, including angioplasty when performed. Compare 37217 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 37217 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
$1245.49
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.
Vascular intervention
About 37217: Retrograde innominate or thoracic carotid stenting
Reports retrograde endovascular stenting of an innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery lesion, including angioplasty when performed.
This service places an intravascular stent in the innominate artery or intrathoracic portion of the common carotid artery using a retrograde approach. It is typically performed by a vascular surgeon, interventional radiologist, or another appropriately trained endovascular specialist in a hospital setting. Access may be open or percutaneous; the approach proceeds back toward the aortic arch from the target vessel. Angioplasty, when performed, and the procedure’s radiological supervision and interpretation are included.
Report 37217 for the treated vessel and retrograde approach, not for a stent in the cervical carotid artery. The operative report should identify the lesion’s arterial location, access method, direction of treatment, and stent placement. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 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. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 37217
- 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 is paid only with documentation of medical necessity.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons not permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU19.87 · 68%
- Practice expense (office) RVU4.43 · 15%
- Malpractice RVU5.02 · 17%
285
Medicare services in 2024 · #4031 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.
37217 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Alaska, from the same CMS release.
37215
No office rateTranscath stent cca w/eps
37215 describes extracranial carotid stenting with embolic protection. Use 37217 for retrograde stenting of the innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery.
37216
No office rateTranscath stent cca w/o eps
37216 describes extracranial carotid stenting without embolic protection. It is not the code for retrograde treatment of the innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery.
Compare 37217 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
$1245.49
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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 37217 in Alaska*.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
4,597
- Code
- 37217
- Physician work
- 19.87
- Practice expense
- 4.43
- Malpractice
- 5.02
GPCI2026.csv
5
- Locality
- Alaska*
- Physician work
- 1.500
- Practice expense
- 1.065
- Malpractice
- 0.551
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 19.87 | × 1.500 | 29.8050 |
| Practice expense | 4.43 | × 1.065 | 4.7179 |
| Malpractice | 5.02 | × 0.551 | 2.7660 |
| Total RVUs | 37.2890 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Alaska*$1245.49
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 19.87 | 1.5 |
| Practice expense | 4.43 | 1.065 |
| Malpractice | 5.02 | 0.551 |
(19.87 × 1.5 + 4.43 × 1.065 + 5.02 × 0.551) × $33.4009 = $1245.49
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.
37217 billing questions
How does 37217 differ from 37218?
Both address stenting of the innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery. Use 37217 for the retrograde approach and 37218 for the antegrade approach.
Can angioplasty be billed separately with 37217?
Angioplasty performed as part of the stenting service is included. The code also includes the radiological supervision and interpretation for the intervention.
When is 37217 more appropriate than 37215 or 37216?
37217 is for retrograde stenting in the innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery. Codes 37215 and 37216 address stenting in the extracranial carotid artery and distinguish use of embolic protection.
What documentation supports the retrograde approach?
Document the treated artery and lesion location, access method, direction of catheter treatment, and stent placement. The record should make clear that the target is the innominate artery or intrathoracic common carotid artery.
How does Medicare handle bilateral reporting and multiple procedures?
Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others are subject to the standard 50% reduction.
May an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documentation of medical necessity. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted under the listed CMS rules.
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.
4,59437214,,Cessj therapy cath removal,A,,2.43,0.31,NA,0.31,,0.47,3.21,3.21,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,59537215,,Transcath stent cca w/eps,R,,17.31,4.70,NA,4.70,,4.62,26.63,26.63,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,0,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,59637216,,Transcath stent cca w/o eps,N,+,17.53,6.34,NA,6.34,,1.87,25.74,25.74,9,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,9,9,9,9,9,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,59737217,,Stent placemt retro carotid,A,,19.87,4.43,NA,4.43,,5.02,29.32,29.32,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,59837218,,Stent placemt ante carotid,A,,14.38,4.25,NA,4.25,,3.58,22.21,22.21,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,59937236,,Open/perq place stent 1st,A,,8.53,67.32,,1.18,,1.97,77.82,11.68,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,60037237,,Open/perq place stent ea add,A,,4.14,31.27,,0.48,,1.00,36.41,5.62,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,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