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CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01

15778 Absorbable mesh Medicare reimbursement rates in Georgia

Reports absorbable mesh or another prosthesis placed to support delayed closure of a defect, such as one involving the abdominal wall or perineum. Compare 15778 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Georgia.

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 15778 in Georgia?

Georgia has 2 payment localities in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the 2 payment areas shown below, using the same CMS release.

Office / nonfacility

No supported rate

Facility setting

$357.03–$366.56

2 of 2 localities have a supported rate.

Lowest: Rest Of Georgia

Highest: Atlanta

A spread of $9.53 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.

Find 15778 in your payment locality →

Surgical procedure

About 15778: Absorbable mesh for delayed defect closure

Reports absorbable mesh or another prosthesis placed to support delayed closure of a defect, such as one involving the abdominal wall or perineum.

15778 describes placing absorbable mesh or another prosthesis to support delayed closure of a defect, rather than using it simply to reinforce a completed repair. Abdominal-wall and perineal defects are examples. The service may occur during a staged operation after earlier surgery or wound treatment. Surgeons performing complex abdominal or perineal procedures are the typical users; the code represents the implant placement, not the underlying operation that created or treated the defect.

Report 15778 as an add-on with the primary procedure, not as a stand-alone service. The operative note should identify the defect, explain why closure was delayed, and document the prosthesis placement. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When multiple procedures occur in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team-surgery payment is not permitted.

CMS billing rules for 15778

Global period
Minor procedure with a 0-day global period: same-day preoperative and postoperative care is 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 RVU6.87 · 65%
  • Practice expense (office) RVU2.01 · 19%
  • Malpractice RVU1.70 · 16%

339

Medicare services in 2024 · #3887 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.

15778 compared with similar codes

Office rates for Georgia, from the same CMS release.

15777

Biologic implant

Soft tissue reinforcement

$219.47–$230.30

Choose 15778 for absorbable mesh or another prosthesis used in delayed defect closure. 15777 describes a biologic implant for soft-tissue reinforcement.

49900

Abdominal wall repair

Incision disruption or evisceration

No office rate

49900 describes secondary suture closure of an abdominal wall for evisceration or dehiscence. 15778 captures the prosthesis placement used to support delayed closure.

49002

Abdominal reoperation

Recent laparotomy

No office rate

49002 describes reopening a recent laparotomy. 15778 describes placing a prosthesis for delayed defect closure, not reopening the prior incision.

Compare 15778 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.

2 of 2 payment localities

Office and facility base rates · shared scale starting at $0

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15778 billing questions

Can 15778 be reported by itself?

No. It is an add-on for absorbable mesh or another prosthesis placed for delayed defect closure and is reported with the primary procedure.

How is 15778 different from 15777?

15778 describes absorbable mesh or another prosthesis used for delayed defect closure. 15777 concerns a biologic implant used for soft-tissue reinforcement.

What documentation supports 15778?

Document the defect and its site, the reason closure was delayed, and the placement of the absorbable mesh or other prosthesis. The record should also identify the primary procedure.

Should modifier 50 be appended for defects on both sides?

No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code; modifier 50 should not be used.

How does the multiple-procedure reduction affect 15778?

When it is performed with other procedures in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the remaining procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction.

Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?

Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team-surgery payment is not permitted.

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.

RVUs for 15778PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 1,550 (RVU26D)