No office rate
Use 61322 when decompression is performed without lobectomy. Use 61323 when the operation includes removal of a brain lobe.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
61322 Cranial decompression Medicare reimbursement rates in Colorado
Reports cranial decompression to relieve dangerous intracranial pressure from cerebral swelling when the operation does not include removal of a brain lobe. Compare 61322 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Colorado.
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 61322 in Colorado?
Colorado 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
No supported rate
Facility setting
$2260.37
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Colorado
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.
Neurosurgery
About 61322: Decompressive cranial surgery without lobectomy
Reports cranial decompression to relieve dangerous intracranial pressure from cerebral swelling when the operation does not include removal of a brain lobe.
A neurosurgeon opens or removes part of the skull to create room for a swollen brain and reduce intracranial pressure. The operation may include opening or expanding the dura, but it does not include removal of a brain lobe. Typical situations include severe traumatic brain injury or a large cerebral infarction with dangerous swelling despite medical treatment. These operations are generally performed in a hospital operating room.
Report the code when the operative record supports decompression without lobectomy; document the indication, operative site and extent, dural work, and any brain tissue removed. The 90-day global period includes 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. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this service. An assistant at surgery may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 61322
- 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 adjustment does not apply; the descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery may be paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons paid only with supporting documentation.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU33.40 · 48%
- Practice expense (office) RVU21.53 · 31%
- Malpractice RVU14.04 · 20%
858
Medicare services in 2024 · #3084 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.
61322 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Colorado, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
61312 describes evacuation of a supratentorial extradural or subdural hematoma. This code describes decompression without lobectomy, not hematoma evacuation alone.
No office rate
61314 describes evacuation of an infratentorial extradural or subdural hematoma. This code is for decompression without lobectomy.
Compare 61322 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
Colorado →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$2260.37
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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 61322 in Colorado.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
6,766
- Code
- 61322
- Physician work
- 33.40
- Practice expense
- 21.53
- Malpractice
- 14.04
GPCI2026.csv
37
- Locality
- Colorado
- Physician work
- 1.012
- Practice expense
- 1.064
- Malpractice
- 0.781
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 33.40 | × 1.012 | 33.8008 |
| Practice expense | 21.53 | × 1.064 | 22.9079 |
| Malpractice | 14.04 | × 0.781 | 10.9652 |
| Total RVUs | 67.6740 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Colorado$2260.37
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 33.4 | 1.012 |
| Practice expense | 21.53 | 1.064 |
| Malpractice | 14.04 | 0.781 |
(33.4 × 1.012 + 21.53 × 1.064 + 14.04 × 0.781) × $33.4009 = $2260.37
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.
61322 billing questions
How does this differ from 61323?
The key distinction is whether the operation includes removal of a brain lobe. This code is for decompression without lobectomy; 61323 is the related option when lobectomy is performed.
Can dural expansion be part of this service?
Yes. The decompression may include work to expand the dura; that alone does not make the operation a different code.
Can modifier 50 be reported?
No. The CMS bilateral adjustment does not apply because the service’s descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
What documentation supports reporting the code?
Document the pressure-relief indication, the cranial site and extent of decompression, dural work, and whether brain tissue was removed. The record should make clear that the operation did not include lobectomy.
How are other procedures in the same session paid?
Under the standard multiple procedure reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are paid at 50% when performed in the same session.
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.
6,76361316,,Inc&subq plmt crnl bone grf,A,,1.36,0.47,NA,0.47,,0.56,2.39,2.39,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76461320,,Crnec/crnot drg icr abs sttl,A,,26.73,17.13,NA,17.13,,11.14,55.00,55.00,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76561321,,Crnec/crnot drg icr abs ittl,A,,29.77,19.60,NA,19.60,,12.58,61.95,61.95,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76661322,,Crnec/crnot dcmprv w/o lobec,A,,33.40,21.53,NA,21.53,,14.04,68.97,68.97,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76761323,,Crnec/crnot dcmprv w/lobec,A,,34.18,20.22,NA,20.22,,14.42,68.82,68.82,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76861330,,Dcmprn orbit only transcrnl,A,,24.67,17.70,NA,17.70,,10.43,52.80,52.80,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,76961333,,Expl orbit w/removal lesion,A,,28.54,18.00,NA,18.00,,12.06,58.60,58.60,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3401112,CA,69,VISALIA,1.017,1.096,0.536
3501112,CA,70,YUBA CITY,1.017,1.096,0.536
3601112,CA,75,REST OF CALIFORNIA,1.017,1.096,0.536
3704112,CO,01,COLORADO,1.012,1.064,0.781
3813102,CT,00,CONNECTICUT,1.020,1.077,1.210
3912202,DC,01,DC + MD/VA SUBURBS,1.054,1.178,1.113
4012102,DE,01,DELAWARE,1.005,0.988,0.899