CPT code 93503: Heart catheter2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Georgia
Reports placement of a flow-directed catheter in the pulmonary artery for hemodynamic monitoring, such as in an intensive care or operative setting.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 93503 in Georgia.
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 93503 covers
A physician places a flow-directed catheter, commonly a Swan-Ganz catheter, through venous access and advances it through the right heart into the pulmonary artery for hemodynamic monitoring. The service is typically performed in an intensive care unit, operating room, or cardiac catheterization setting by a cardiologist, anesthesiologist, or other physician managing a patient who needs invasive monitoring. The purpose is catheter placement and monitoring, not a diagnostic right-heart catheterization study.
Report the service when the record supports placement of the monitoring catheter, including the indication and the catheter’s final position. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. Modifier 50 is inappropriate because the descriptor and anatomy do not support bilateral reporting. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; co-surgeons and team surgery 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 93503 pays more and less in Georgia
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Unavailable | $83.07 |
| Rest Of Georgia | Unavailable | $81.53 |
How the 93503 rate is calculated
Each of 93503’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 · 93503
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work1.95
1.95 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense0.31
0.31 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.18
0.18 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
2.4400
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$81.50
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 93503
The CMS indicators that decide how 93503 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 93503
Heart catheter
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 000 | Same-day global: pre- and post-op care on the day of the procedure is included. |
| Multiple procedures | 0 | No multiple-procedure reduction. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 0 | Not paid without supporting documentation. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
93503 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
4 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 93451Right heart cath
- Choose 93451 for a diagnostic right-heart catheterization study. Choose 93503 for placement of a flow-directed catheter for monitoring.
- 36556Central line insertion
- Code 36556 describes placement of a central venous catheter. It does not describe advancing a flow-directed catheter into the pulmonary artery for monitoring.
- 93505Heart biopsy
- Code 93505 reports endomyocardial tissue sampling. It is a biopsy service, not placement of a monitoring catheter.
93503 billing questions
How is this different from a diagnostic right-heart catheterization?
This code describes placing a flow-directed catheter for monitoring. A diagnostic right-heart catheterization, such as 93451, is selected when the physician performs a diagnostic hemodynamic study.
Does the record need to identify the catheter’s final position?
Yes. Document the monitoring indication, the placement procedure, and the catheter’s final position in the pulmonary artery.
Can modifier 50 be reported?
No. CMS identifies bilateral adjustment as inappropriate for this code because the descriptor and anatomy do not support bilateral reporting.
Can an assistant-at-surgery be paid?
Assistant-at-surgery payment is allowed only when the record documents medical necessity. CMS does not permit co-surgeons or team surgery for this code.
What care is included in the global period?
The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care.
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
Fee sheets
Put 93503 and the rest of your codes on one sheet
Build a fee sheet from your own code list at your locality, put your payer contracts beside Medicare, and see what changed each quarter.
Build my fee sheetOr price your code list free →