No office rate
29800 is for diagnostic TMJ inspection, with or without synovial biopsy. Use 29804 when therapeutic arthroscopic surgery is performed on the joint.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
29800 Jaw arthroscopy Medicare reimbursement rates in California
Diagnostic temporomandibular joint arthroscopy evaluates the joint interior, with or without synovial biopsy, when direct visualization is needed. Compare 29800 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in California.
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 29800 in California?
California has 29 payment localities in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the 29 payment areas shown below, using the same CMS release.
Office / nonfacility
No supported rate
Facility setting
$513.37–$616.60
29 of 29 localities have a supported rate.
Lowest: Chico
Highest: San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty)
A spread of $103.23 per service.
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.
Where 29800 pays more and less in California
Arthroscopy
About 29800: Diagnostic temporomandibular joint arthroscopy
Diagnostic temporomandibular joint arthroscopy evaluates the joint interior, with or without synovial biopsy, when direct visualization is needed.
The surgeon inserts an arthroscope into the temporomandibular joint to inspect its internal structures and assess abnormalities such as synovial changes or internal derangement. A synovial biopsy may be obtained during the examination. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons and other surgeons who treat TMJ disorders typically perform the procedure in a surgical facility; Medicare claims for this service in 2024 were reported in facility settings.
Report this code when the arthroscopy is diagnostic, whether or not synovial tissue is sampled. If the surgeon performs a therapeutic arthroscopic procedure on the joint, report the applicable surgical service rather than separately reporting the diagnostic examination. The record should support the indication for direct joint inspection and describe the findings and any biopsy. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of 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. 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 29800
- 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 RVU6.67 · 44%
- Practice expense (office) RVU7.14 · 47%
- Malpractice RVU1.42 · 9%
22
Medicare services in 2024 · #5862 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.
29800 compared with similar codes
Office rates for California, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
21060 describes open TMJ meniscectomy. It is not the code for arthroscopic inspection or biopsy.
No office rate
21240 describes TMJ arthroplasty, an open reconstructive operation. 29800 is a diagnostic arthroscopic examination.
Compare 29800 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.
29 of 29 payment localities
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Bakersfield | Office Unavailable | Facility $517.28 |
| Chico | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| El Centro | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.61 |
| Fresno | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Hanford-Corcoran | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (Los Angeles/Orange Cnty) | Office Unavailable | Facility $545.54 |
| Madera | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Merced | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Modesto | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Napa | Office Unavailable | Facility $575.23 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | Office Unavailable | Facility $540.46 |
| Redding | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Rest Of California | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | Office Unavailable | Facility $528.63 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | Office Unavailable | Facility $533.58 |
| Salinas | Office Unavailable | Facility $531.51 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | Office Unavailable | Facility $540.40 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (Marin Cnty) | Office Unavailable | Facility $601.98 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (San Francisco/San Mateo/Alameda/Contra Costa Cnty) | Office Unavailable | Facility $600.37 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty) | Office Unavailable | Facility $616.60 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (Santa Clara Cnty) | Office Unavailable | Facility $610.01 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles | Office Unavailable | Facility $523.62 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville | Office Unavailable | Facility $542.64 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara | Office Unavailable | Facility $532.51 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma | Office Unavailable | Facility $547.75 |
| Stockton | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Vallejo | Office Unavailable | Facility $572.91 |
| Visalia | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
| Yuba City | Office Unavailable | Facility $513.37 |
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29800 billing questions
When should I report this instead of 29804?
Use 29800 for diagnostic inspection, with or without synovial biopsy. When the surgeon performs therapeutic arthroscopic surgery on the TMJ, report 29804 rather than separately reporting the diagnostic examination.
Is synovial biopsy separately reported?
The diagnostic arthroscopy includes the option of taking a synovial biopsy. Do not treat the biopsy as a separate arthroscopy service.
Can I report 29800 with a therapeutic TMJ arthroscopy on the same joint?
The diagnostic inspection is part of the therapeutic arthroscopic service when surgery is performed on that joint. Report the applicable surgical service, not a separate diagnostic arthroscopy for the same examination.
How is bilateral TMJ arthroscopy reported?
For bilateral services, report modifier 50; CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%.
What documentation supports the service?
Document why direct arthroscopic inspection was performed, the joint findings, and whether synovial tissue was sampled. The record should make clear whether the service remained diagnostic or included therapeutic arthroscopic work.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment is allowed only when medical necessity is documented. CMS does not permit co-surgeons or team surgery for this code.
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.
3,31129740,,Wedging of cast,A,,1.09,1.97,,0.50,,0.22,3.28,1.81,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31229750,,Wedging of clubfoot cast,A,,1.23,2.05,,0.54,,0.25,3.53,2.02,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31329799,,Unlisted px casting/strpg,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,YYY,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,0,1,1,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31429800,,Jaw arthroscopy/surgery,A,,6.67,7.14,NA,7.14,,1.42,15.23,15.23,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31529804,,Jaw arthroscopy/surgery,A,,8.65,6.43,NA,6.43,,1.14,16.22,16.22,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31629805,,Sho arthrs dx +- synovial bx,A,,5.88,6.35,NA,6.35,,1.21,13.44,13.44,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,1,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,31729806,,Sho arthrs srg capsulorraphy,A,,14.76,11.35,NA,11.35,,3.02,29.13,29.13,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,1,1,0,9,29805,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00