$112.09–$142.70
Use 77003 for fluoroscopic needle guidance in spinal or paraspinal procedures; 77002 describes guidance for other needle-placement targets.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
77002 Fluoroscopy guidance Medicare reimbursement rates in California
Reports fluoroscopic x-ray guidance used to position a needle for procedures such as joint aspiration, injection, or tissue sampling. Compare 77002 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 77002 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
$130.74–$167.75
29 of 29 localities have a supported rate.
Lowest: Chico
Highest: San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty)
A spread of $37.01 per service.
Facility setting
No supported rate
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 77002 pays more and less in California
29 payment localities
$130.74 to $167.75
Radiology
About 77002: Fluoroscopic needle placement guidance
Reports fluoroscopic x-ray guidance used to position a needle for procedures such as joint aspiration, injection, or tissue sampling.
The service uses live x-ray imaging to guide a needle toward a target and confirm its position during a procedure. Radiologists, interventional radiologists, orthopedists, and pain physicians may use it for procedures such as joint aspiration or injection, or needle sampling of a lesion. The fluoroscopic guidance and its interpretation are distinct from the needle procedure itself.
Report 77002 only with a primary procedure; it is an add-on code and is paid within that procedure’s global period. The record should identify the target, document use of fluoroscopy to guide needle placement, and support the interpretation. Modifier 26 represents the professional interpretation, while modifier TC represents the equipment and staff. Reporting without either modifier represents the global service.
CMS billing rules for 77002
- Global period
- Add-on code: billed only together with a primary procedure and paid within that procedure's global period.
- Professional and technical components
- Diagnostic test with a professional component (modifier 26, interpretation) and a technical component (modifier TC, equipment and staff); billing without a modifier is the global service.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU0.53 · 15%
- Practice expense (office) RVU3.06 · 84%
- Malpractice RVU0.04 · 1%
530.7K
Medicare services in 2024 · #221 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.
77002 compared with similar codes
Office rates for California, from the same CMS release.
Compare 77002 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 $130.87 | Facility Unavailable |
| Chico | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| El Centro | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Fresno | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Hanford-Corcoran | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (Los Angeles/Orange Cnty) | Office $140.23 | Facility Unavailable |
| Madera | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Merced | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Modesto | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Napa | Office $154.20 | Facility Unavailable |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | Office $139.84 | Facility Unavailable |
| Redding | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Rest Of California | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | Office $131.18 | Facility Unavailable |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | Office $137.92 | Facility Unavailable |
| Salinas | Office $137.42 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | Office $141.20 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (Marin Cnty) | Office $164.11 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (San Francisco/San Mateo/Alameda/Contra Costa Cnty) | Office $164.06 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty) | Office $167.75 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (Santa Clara Cnty) | Office $167.56 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles | Office $135.13 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville | Office $142.97 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara | Office $138.09 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma | Office $144.46 | Facility Unavailable |
| Stockton | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Vallejo | Office $154.14 | Facility Unavailable |
| Visalia | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Yuba City | Office $130.74 | Facility Unavailable |
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77002 billing questions
Can 77002 be reported by itself?
No. CMS identifies 77002 as an add-on code that must be billed with a primary procedure.
When is 77002 used with a joint injection?
It may be reported when fluoroscopy guides needle placement for a joint procedure, such as a large-joint aspiration or injection, and the guidance is separately reportable.
How does 77002 differ from 77003?
Both describe fluoroscopic needle guidance, but 77003 is for guidance in spinal or paraspinal procedures. Use 77002 for other needle-placement targets.
What do modifiers 26 and TC represent?
Modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation; modifier TC identifies the technical service, including equipment and staff. Without either modifier, the claim represents the global service.
What documentation supports 77002?
Document the needle target, the use of fluoroscopy to guide placement, and the interpretation. The claim must also include the primary procedure.
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.
8,92577001,,Fluoroguide for vein device,A,,0.37,2.53,,2.53,NA,0.05,2.95,2.95,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,92677001,26,Fluoroguide for vein device,A,,0.37,0.12,,0.12,,0.04,0.53,0.53,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,92777001,TC,Fluoroguide for vein device,A,,0.00,2.41,,2.41,NA,0.01,2.42,2.42,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,03,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,92877002,,Needle localization by xray,A,,0.53,3.06,,3.06,NA,0.04,3.63,3.63,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,92977002,26,Needle localization by xray,A,,0.53,0.25,,0.25,,0.03,0.81,0.81,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,93077002,TC,Needle localization by xray,A,,0.00,2.81,,2.81,NA,0.01,2.82,2.82,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,03,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8,93177003,,Fluoroguide for spine inject,A,,0.59,2.49,,2.49,NA,0.05,3.13,3.13,1,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00