Billing code 77077: Joint surveyMedicare rate & RVUs in Alaska
Reports a single-view radiographic survey of one or two joints, such as comparative hand or foot imaging for an inflammatory joint condition.
Medicare pays $54.65 for 77077 in the office in Alaska (Alaska*). Which amount applies depends on the service address.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
On this page 9 sections
What 77077 covers
This service captures a single radiographic projection that surveys one or two joints. It may be used when a clinician needs a broad joint assessment, for example when evaluating hands or feet for inflammatory arthritis. A radiologic technologist performs the imaging, and a radiologist or other qualified physician interprets the images. The service may be furnished in an office imaging department or a hospital radiology department.
Select this code when the study covers one or two joints in a single view; focused imaging with multiple views of a specific joint is coded according to that examination instead. Documentation should identify the joints imaged, the number of views, the clinical reason for the survey, and the interpretation. The professional component may be reported with modifier 26, the technical component with modifier TC, or the complete service without either modifier. CMS separately prices the 26 and TC components.
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.
77077 in Alaska*
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska* | $54.65 | Unavailable |
How the 77077 rate is calculated
Each of 77077’s three RVUs is multiplied by a geographic index (GPCI) for the payment locality, added up, and multiplied by the conversion factor. Drag the indexes or enter a ZIP to see what moves the rate.
How the rate is built · 77077
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
Work 0.32Practice expense 1.07Malpractice 0.03
All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 77077
The CMS indicators that decide how 77077 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 77077
Joint survey
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | XXX | The global surgery concept doesn’t apply. |
| Multiple procedures | 0 | No multiple-procedure reduction. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 0 | Not paid without supporting documentation. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 1 | Diagnostic test with separate professional (26) and technical (TC) components. |
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 26 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
77077 without 26 · national office
$47.43
Joint survey
77077-26 · Professional component
$16.37
Pays only the interpretation and report.
77077 compared with similar codes
Compare codes
77077 vs 77071 vs 77074 vs 77075: national Medicare rates
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
How to choose
- 77071Stress radiographs
- 77071 involves manually applied stress during joint radiography. This code describes a single-view joint survey without that stress technique.
- 77074Skeletal survey
- 77074 is a limited osseous survey, whereas this code is a single-view survey focused on one or two joints.
- 77075Skeletal survey
- 77075 covers a complete osseous survey; this code is limited to a single view of one or two joints.
77077 billing questions
When should this code be chosen over a standard hand or foot X-ray?
Use this code for a single-view survey of one or two joints. A focused examination of a hand or foot with multiple views is reported with the code for that examination.
How are the professional and technical services reported?
Report modifier 26 for the physician's interpretation and modifier TC for the imaging equipment and staff. Without either modifier, the claim represents the global service.
What details should the imaging report support?
Document the joint or joints examined, the single view obtained, the clinical indication, and the physician's image interpretation.
Can this code describe several views of one joint?
No. It describes a single-view survey covering one or two joints; use the applicable focused-joint imaging code when multiple views are obtained.
Is this the same as stress radiography of a joint?
No. This code is for a joint survey; code 77071 describes radiography involving manually applied stress to a joint.
Where these rates come from
FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indexes and the conversion factor. Services without a published rate are labeled, never given a made-up amount. Amounts are Medicare allowed amounts before claim adjustments: not a patient’s bill or a commercial rate.
CMS RVU26D · effective Oct 1, 2026 through the day before Jan 1, 2027
Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
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