$839.71
Choose 50433 when the catheter extends through the ureter as a nephroureteral catheter. Choose 50432 when it is placed as a nephrostomy catheter in the kidney.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
50433 Catheter placement Medicare reimbursement rates in Arizona
Report percutaneous placement of a catheter extending from the kidney through the ureter, commonly to provide drainage across a ureteral obstruction. Compare 50433 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Arizona.
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 50433 in Arizona?
Arizona 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
$1044.61
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Arizona
One mapped payment locality.
Facility setting
$215.74
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Arizona
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.
Interventional radiology
About 50433: Percutaneous nephroureteral catheter placement
Report percutaneous placement of a catheter extending from the kidney through the ureter, commonly to provide drainage across a ureteral obstruction.
An interventional radiologist typically accesses the kidney’s collecting system through the skin and advances a nephroureteral catheter through the ureter, often into the bladder. The catheter can provide drainage across a ureteral obstruction or other condition that prevents normal urine flow. Imaging guidance is used to place the catheter, and diagnostic nephrostogram or ureterogram imaging performed as part of the placement is included. The service is commonly performed in a hospital or imaging center.
Report 50433 when the documented service places a nephroureteral catheter, rather than a catheter that remains in the kidney as in 50432. The procedure note should support the indication, percutaneous access, catheter course and endpoint, and laterality. This is a minor procedure with a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. For bilateral procedures, modifier 50 is paid at 150%. When multiple procedures occur in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. Assistant-at-surgery payment is restricted; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 50433
- Global period
- Minor procedure with a 0-day global period: same-day preoperative and postoperative care is 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
- Statutory restriction: assistant at surgery is not paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons not permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU4.92 · 15%
- Practice expense (office) RVU26.73 · 83%
- Malpractice RVU0.53 · 2%
4.6K
Medicare services in 2024 · #1938 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.
50433 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Arizona, from the same CMS release.
$840.51
50434 is for converting an existing nephrostomy catheter to a nephroureteral catheter; 50433 is for placement of a nephroureteral catheter.
$599.44
50430 describes an antegrade nephrostogram or ureterogram through existing access. It does not describe placement of a nephroureteral catheter.
$299.06
50431 describes an antegrade nephrostogram or ureterogram using new access. Use 50433 when the service places a nephroureteral catheter, with associated diagnostic imaging included when performed.
Compare 50433 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
Arizona →
Office / nonfacility
$1044.61
Facility
$215.74
Need rates for a whole code list?
Fee-sheet and API access are in early access. Tell us which codes and locations your team needs.
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 50433 in Arizona.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
5,920
- Code
- 50433
- Physician work
- 4.92
- Practice expense
- 26.73
- Malpractice
- 0.53
GPCI2026.csv
6
- Locality
- Arizona
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.969
- Malpractice
- 0.856
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 4.92 | × 1.000 | 4.9200 |
| Practice expense | 26.73 | × 0.969 | 25.9014 |
| Malpractice | 0.53 | × 0.856 | 0.4537 |
| Total RVUs | 31.2751 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Office / nonfacility rate, Arizona$1044.61
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Office / nonfacility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 4.92 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 26.73 | 0.969 |
| Malpractice | 0.53 | 0.856 |
(4.92 × 1 + 26.73 × 0.969 + 0.53 × 0.856) × $33.4009 = $1044.61
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 4.92 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 1.12 | 0.969 |
| Malpractice | 0.53 | 0.856 |
(4.92 × 1 + 1.12 × 0.969 + 0.53 × 0.856) × $33.4009 = $215.74
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.
50433 billing questions
How is 50433 different from 50432?
50433 is for a catheter advanced through the ureter as a nephroureteral catheter. Use 50432 when the catheter is placed in the kidney and does not extend through the ureter.
Can the nephrostogram or ureterogram be billed separately?
Diagnostic nephrostogram or ureterogram imaging performed as part of the catheter placement is included in 50433.
When should 50434 be considered instead?
50434 describes converting an existing nephrostomy catheter to a nephroureteral catheter. 50433 describes placement of the nephroureteral catheter rather than conversion of an existing catheter.
How should bilateral placement be reported?
For a bilateral procedure, report modifier 50; CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%.
What happens when other procedures are performed in the same session?
Under the standard multiple procedure reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. Same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included in 50433’s 0-day global period.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment is restricted for 50433. Co-surgeons and team surgery are 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.
5,91750430,,Njx px nfrosgrm &/urtrgrm,A,,2.83,15.30,,0.89,,0.34,18.47,4.06,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,91850431,,Njx px nfrosgrm &/urtrgrm,A,,1.07,8.03,,0.58,,0.12,9.22,1.77,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,91950432,,Plmt nephrostomy catheter,A,,3.90,21.54,,0.99,,0.43,25.87,5.32,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,92050433,,Plmt nephroureteral catheter,A,,4.92,26.73,,1.12,,0.53,32.18,6.57,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,92150434,,Convert nephrostomy catheter,A,,3.66,21.83,,0.92,,0.41,25.90,4.99,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,92250435,,Exchange nephrostomy cath,A,,1.77,14.90,,0.66,,0.20,16.87,2.63,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,92350436,,Dilat xst trc ndurlgc px,A,,2.71,1.02,NA,1.02,,0.35,4.08,4.08,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
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
901112,CA,55,CHICO,1.017,1.096,0.536