No office rate
Use this code for tube thoracostomy to drain the pleural space. 32960 is for deliberately introducing air to create a therapeutic pneumothorax.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
32960 Therapeutic pneumothorax Medicare reimbursement rates in Georgia
Reports deliberate introduction of air into the pleural space to create a therapeutic pneumothorax, rather than drainage of pleural air or fluid. Compare 32960 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 32960 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
$127.73–$136.57
2 of 2 localities have a supported rate.
Facility setting
$81.25–$83.63
2 of 2 localities have a 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.
Pulmonary procedure
About 32960: Therapeutic pneumothorax induction
Reports deliberate introduction of air into the pleural space to create a therapeutic pneumothorax, rather than drainage of pleural air or fluid.
This service involves intentionally introducing air into the pleural space to produce a pneumothorax for therapeutic purposes. It is distinct from treating a spontaneous pneumothorax by removing air or placing a drain. The procedure is performed by a physician; documentation should establish the therapeutic intent and describe the pleural intervention. The code is rarely reported in current Medicare practice, so the record should make clear what was done rather than relying only on a diagnosis of pneumothorax.
Report 32960 for the therapeutic induction itself, not for thoracentesis or chest-tube drainage. The minor procedure has a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, Medicare pays the highest-valued procedure in full and applies the standard multiple-procedure reduction to the others. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this code. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this service; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 32960
- 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
- Statutory restriction: assistant at surgery is not paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons not permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU1.79 · 45%
- Practice expense (office) RVU2.08 · 52%
- Malpractice RVU0.15 · 4%
14
Medicare services in 2024 · #6097 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.
32960 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Georgia, from the same CMS release.
$240.88–$265.22
Thoracentesis removes pleural fluid by needle. It does not describe introducing air for a therapeutic pneumothorax.
$762.71–$855.72
This code describes percutaneous pleural drainage using a catheter. Choose 32960 only when the documented service deliberately creates a therapeutic pneumothorax.
Compare 32960 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
Atlanta →
Office / nonfacility
$136.57
Facility
$83.63
Rest Of Georgia →
Office / nonfacility
$127.73
Facility
$81.25
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32960 billing questions
How is 32960 different from a chest tube procedure?
32960 describes deliberate introduction of air to create a therapeutic pneumothorax. A chest tube procedure addresses pleural drainage or evacuation, so select the code that matches the documented service.
Can 32960 be reported with same-day preoperative or postoperative care?
The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care for the procedure.
Should modifier 50 be added when both sides are treated?
No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code.
Can an assistant surgeon or co-surgeon be billed?
Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for 32960, and co-surgeons are not permitted. Team surgery is also not permitted.
What documentation supports reporting 32960?
Document the therapeutic intent, the deliberate introduction of air into the pleural space, and the procedure performed. A diagnosis of pneumothorax alone does not establish that this service was provided.
How does Medicare handle 32960 when another procedure is performed in the same session?
Under the standard multiple-procedure reduction, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the other procedures are subject to the reduction.
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.
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3,81132998,,Ablate pulm tumor perq rf,A,,8.80,77.68,,1.58,,1.02,87.50,11.40,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00