No office rate
29840 is for diagnostic wrist arthroscopy. Report 29846 when the surgeon performs qualifying TFCC treatment or joint debridement.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
29846 Wrist arthroscopy Medicare reimbursement rates in Indiana
Reports wrist arthroscopy to treat triangular fibrocartilage complex damage or debride the joint, including removal of unstable tissue or repair. Compare 29846 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Indiana.
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 29846 in Indiana?
Indiana 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
$449.75
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Indiana
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.
Orthopedic surgery
About 29846: Wrist arthroscopy with TFCC treatment
Reports wrist arthroscopy to treat triangular fibrocartilage complex damage or debride the joint, including removal of unstable tissue or repair.
An orthopedic or hand surgeon uses a small camera and instruments through wrist portals to address a triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) tear or remove damaged or inflamed tissue within the joint. Typical cases include a symptomatic TFCC injury on the ulnar side of the wrist or other intra-articular pathology requiring arthroscopic debridement. The operation is generally performed in a surgical setting, with the operative report identifying the pathology and the work performed under visualization.
Report this code when the arthroscopic service includes TFCC excision or repair, or joint debridement, rather than diagnostic inspection alone or a different defined wrist procedure. Documentation should describe the treated structure, the tear or tissue abnormality, and whether tissue was removed, repaired, or debrided. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care during that period. When related endoscopies are performed together, endoscopy-family pricing applies. For bilateral procedures, modifier 50 is paid at 150%. An assistant is paid only when medical necessity is documented; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 29846
- 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
- Endoscopy family pricing applies when related endoscopies are performed together.
- Bilateral procedures
- Bilateral procedure with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery is paid only with documentation of medical necessity.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons not permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU6.72 · 46%
- Practice expense (office) RVU6.60 · 45%
- Malpractice RVU1.29 · 9%
2K
Medicare services in 2024 · #2455 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.
29846 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Indiana, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
29844 describes partial wrist synovectomy. Use 29846 for TFCC excision or repair, or joint debridement, rather than synovectomy alone.
No office rate
29847 is for wrist arthroscopy with internal fixation for fracture or instability. This code addresses TFCC treatment or joint debridement.
No office rate
29843 covers wrist arthroscopy for infection-related lavage and drainage; this code addresses TFCC pathology or joint debridement.
Compare 29846 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
Indiana →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$449.75
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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 29846 in Indiana.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
3,339
- Code
- 29846
- Physician work
- 6.72
- Practice expense
- 6.60
- Malpractice
- 1.29
GPCI2026.csv
52
- Locality
- Indiana
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.927
- Malpractice
- 0.486
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 6.72 | × 1.000 | 6.7200 |
| Practice expense | 6.60 | × 0.927 | 6.1182 |
| Malpractice | 1.29 | × 0.486 | 0.6269 |
| Total RVUs | 13.4651 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Indiana$449.75
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 6.72 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 6.6 | 0.927 |
| Malpractice | 1.29 | 0.486 |
(6.72 × 1 + 6.6 × 0.927 + 1.29 × 0.486) × $33.4009 = $449.75
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.
29846 billing questions
When is this code appropriate instead of a diagnostic wrist arthroscopy?
Use this code when the surgeon performs arthroscopic TFCC excision or repair, or joint debridement. Diagnostic inspection without that therapeutic work is a different service.
Does this code cover wrist synovectomy?
The wrist arthroscopy family has separate codes for partial and complete synovectomy. Select the code that matches the synovectomy performed rather than treating synovectomy alone as TFCC treatment or joint debridement.
What should the operative report document?
Identify the TFCC or other joint tissue treated, the pathology found, and the arthroscopic work performed, such as repair, excision, or debridement.
How is a bilateral service reported under CMS rules?
For bilateral procedures, modifier 50 is paid at 150%. The operative record should support treatment of both wrists.
Can an assistant surgeon be paid for this procedure?
CMS pays an assistant at surgery only when documentation supports medical necessity. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
What postoperative care is included?
This is major surgery with a 90-day global period. The day-before preoperative visit and related postoperative care during the 90 days are included.
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.
3,33629843,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,6.00,6.78,NA,6.78,,1.28,14.06,14.06,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,2,1,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,33729844,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,6.35,6.50,NA,6.50,,1.25,14.10,14.10,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,2,0,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,33829845,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,7.50,7.42,NA,7.42,,1.45,16.37,16.37,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,2,1,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,33929846,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,6.72,6.60,NA,6.60,,1.29,14.61,14.61,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,0,0,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34029847,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,7.04,6.95,NA,6.95,,1.49,15.48,15.48,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,2,0,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34129848,,Wrist endoscopy/surgery,A,,6.23,7.10,NA,7.10,,1.21,14.54,14.54,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34229850,,Knee arthroscopy/surgery,A,,8.06,8.00,NA,8.00,,1.71,17.77,17.77,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,0,2,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4906102,IL,12,EAST ST. LOUIS,1.000,0.920,2.014
5006102,IL,15,SUBURBAN CHICAGO,1.007,1.027,1.772
5106102,IL,99,REST OF ILLINOIS,1.000,0.913,1.563
5208102,IN,00,INDIANA,1.000,0.927,0.486
5305102,IA,00,IOWA,1.000,0.915,0.397
5405202,KS,00,KANSAS,1.000,0.904,0.504
5515102,KY,00,KENTUCKY,1.000,0.889,0.915