$207.86–$269.28
Choose 78201 for static liver images alone; choose 78202 when vascular-flow imaging is part of the examination.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
78201 Liver imaging Medicare reimbursement rates in California
Reports radionuclide imaging focused on static liver images when the examination does not include vascular-flow imaging or spleen imaging. Compare 78201 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 78201 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
$185.91–$240.98
29 of 29 localities have a supported rate.
Lowest: Chico
Highest: San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty)
A spread of $55.07 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 78201 pays more and less in California
29 payment localities
$185.91 to $240.98
Nuclear medicine
About 78201: Static liver scintigraphy
Reports radionuclide imaging focused on static liver images when the examination does not include vascular-flow imaging or spleen imaging.
78201 represents a radionuclide study that produces static images focused on the liver, without vascular-flow imaging. Nuclear medicine staff acquire the images, and a nuclear medicine physician interprets findings such as hepatic distribution, contour, or focal abnormalities. The study may be performed in a hospital imaging department or outpatient nuclear medicine facility when the clinical question calls for static liver scintigraphy rather than evaluation of biliary transit.
Select the code from the documented protocol and images: report 78201 for static liver imaging alone, 78202 when vascular-flow imaging is included, and 78215 or 78216 when the study also images the spleen. The order, imaging record, and interpretation should support the liver-only static examination. CMS recognizes separately priced professional and technical components: use modifier 26 for the interpretation and modifier TC for the equipment and staff; billing without either modifier represents the global service.
CMS billing rules for 78201
- 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 RVU0.43 · 8%
- Practice expense (office) RVU4.65 · 90%
- Malpractice RVU0.06 · 1%
934
Medicare services in 2024 · #3021 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.
78201 compared with similar codes
Office rates for California, from the same CMS release.
$192.91–$249.76
78215 covers static imaging of both the liver and spleen, while 78201 is limited to liver imaging.
$141.81–$181.92
78216 includes liver and spleen imaging with vascular-flow imaging; 78201 is static liver imaging alone.
$308.68–$400.13
78226 is for hepatobiliary system imaging, addressing biliary function or transit rather than static liver imaging alone.
Compare 78201 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 $186.08 | Facility Unavailable |
| Chico | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| El Centro | Office $185.92 | Facility Unavailable |
| Fresno | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Hanford-Corcoran | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (Los Angeles/Orange Cnty) | Office $200.02 | Facility Unavailable |
| Madera | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Merced | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Modesto | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Napa | Office $220.99 | Facility Unavailable |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | Office $199.59 | Facility Unavailable |
| Redding | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Rest Of California | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario | Office $186.55 | Facility Unavailable |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom | Office $196.58 | Facility Unavailable |
| Salinas | Office $195.89 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | Office $201.64 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (Marin Cnty) | Office $235.64 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (San Francisco/San Mateo/Alameda/Contra Costa Cnty) | Office $235.57 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (San Benito Cnty) | Office $240.98 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (Santa Clara Cnty) | Office $240.70 | Facility Unavailable |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles | Office $192.58 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville | Office $204.44 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara | Office $196.94 | Facility Unavailable |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma | Office $206.59 | Facility Unavailable |
| Stockton | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Vallejo | Office $220.89 | Facility Unavailable |
| Visalia | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
| Yuba City | Office $185.91 | Facility Unavailable |
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78201 billing questions
How does 78201 differ from 78202?
78201 identifies static liver imaging alone. Use 78202 when the examination includes vascular-flow imaging.
When is 78215 a better fit?
Use 78215 for static imaging of both the liver and spleen. Code 78201 is focused on the liver alone.
Can the professional and technical services be billed separately?
Yes. Modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation, and modifier TC identifies the technical service, including equipment and staff. Without either modifier, the claim represents the global service.
What documentation supports reporting 78201?
The order, imaging record, and interpretation should establish that the service was static imaging of the liver alone, without vascular-flow imaging or spleen imaging.
Is 78201 the code for a hepatobiliary study?
No. 78201 describes static liver imaging; 78226 is used for imaging of the hepatobiliary system.
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.
9,25478199,,Unlstd hematop ret/endo lymp,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,NA,0.00,0.00,0.00,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
9,25578199,26,Unlstd hematop ret/endo lymp,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
9,25678199,TC,Unlstd hematop ret/endo lymp,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,NA,0.00,0.00,0.00,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
9,25778201,,Liver imaging static only,A,,0.43,4.65,,4.65,NA,0.06,5.14,5.14,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,16.60,16.60,0.17
9,25878201,26,Liver imaging static only,A,,0.43,0.14,,0.14,,0.02,0.59,0.59,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
9,25978201,TC,Liver imaging static only,A,,0.00,4.51,,4.51,NA,0.04,4.55,4.55,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,01,0,99,16.46,16.46,0.15
9,26078202,,Liver imaging with vasc flow,A,,0.50,5.18,,5.18,NA,0.07,5.75,5.75,1,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,16.64,16.64,0.16