Billing code 31080: Frontal sinus surgeryMedicare rate & RVUs in Florida
Reports surgery that removes or disables the frontal sinus cavity, typically to manage difficult frontal sinus disease or prevent recurrent problems.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 31080 in Florida.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
On this page 9 sections
What 31080 covers
This operation addresses the frontal sinus by surgically exposing the cavity and obliterating it, with or without an osteoplastic flap. Otolaryngologists and surgeons working with the frontal sinus may perform it in an operating room, often for persistent or complex disease when maintaining an open sinus pathway is not the chosen treatment. The operative report should establish that the work was an obliterative frontal sinus procedure, rather than exploration alone or a procedure on another sinus.
Report the code when the documented operative work matches this frontal sinus obliteration service; support selection with the approach, structures treated, and extent of the procedure. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% multiple-procedure reduction. For bilateral reporting with modifier 50, CMS pays at 150%. An assistant at surgery may be paid; co-surgeon and team-surgery payment are not permitted.
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.
Where 31080 pays more and less in Florida
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Fort Lauderdale | Unavailable | $1,037.83 |
| Miami | Unavailable | $1,095.40 |
| Rest Of Florida | Unavailable | $990.56 |
How the 31080 rate is calculated
Each of 31080’s three RVUs is multiplied by a geographic index (GPCI) for the payment locality, added up, and multiplied by the conversion factor. Drag the indexes or enter a ZIP to see what moves the rate.
How the rate is built · 31080
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
Work 12.42Practice expense 15.20Malpractice 1.80
All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 31080
31080 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.
CMS payment indicators · 31080
Frontal sinus surgery
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 090 | Major surgery: the day before, the day of, and 90 days after are included. |
| Multiple procedures | 2 | Standard reduction: highest-valued procedure at 100%, others at 50%. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 1 | Bilateral with modifier 50 pays 150% of the fee schedule amount. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 2 | Paid. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
| Split (54/55/56) | 0.10/0.76/0.14 | Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care. |
Global surgery period · 31080
Frontal sinus surgery
90-day global period ends
Dec 30, 2026
Covers Sep 30, 2026 through Dec 30, 2026 (92 days, including the day before surgery).
Visit on Oct 31, 2026
Day 30 of the 90-day post-op period: related follow-up care is included in the surgical payment.
Pre-op dayGlobal period
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 50 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
31080 without 50 · national facility
$982.65
Frontal sinus surgery
31080-50 · Bilateral: 150%
$1,473.98
Both sides on one line with modifier 50 are paid at 150% of the fee schedule amount (subject to multiple-procedure rules with other procedures).
31080 compared with similar codes
Compare codes
31080 vs 31070 vs 31075 vs 31081: national Medicare rates
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
How to choose
- 31070Frontal sinus surgery
- Use for frontal sinus exploration when the operative service is exploration rather than obliteration of the sinus cavity.
- 31075Frontal sinus exploration
- This is also a frontal sinus exploration code. Choose the obliteration code only when the documented work is the frontal sinus obliterative procedure.
- 31081Frontal sinus surgery
- This is a related frontal sinus removal code. Compare its full code descriptor with the specific operative technique and extent documented before selecting between the codes.
31080 billing questions
How is this different from frontal sinus exploration?
This code is for obliterative surgery on the frontal sinus cavity. Codes 31070 and 31075 describe frontal sinus exploration, not the same obliterative service.
Does this code include related postoperative care?
Yes. CMS assigns a 90-day global period that includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
Can an assistant surgeon be reported?
CMS allows payment for an assistant at surgery. Co-surgeon and team-surgery payment are not permitted for this code.
How is bilateral surgery paid?
When the service is bilateral and reported with modifier 50, CMS pays at 150%.
What happens when another procedure is performed in the same session?
CMS pays the highest-valued procedure in full and applies the standard multiple-procedure reduction to the other procedures.
Where these rates come from
FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indexes and the conversion factor. Services without a published rate are labeled, never given a made-up amount. Amounts are Medicare allowed amounts before claim adjustments: not a patient’s bill or a commercial rate.
CMS RVU26D · effective Oct 1, 2026 through the day before Jan 1, 2027
Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
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