$722.29
Both codes are for tunneled central catheters without a port or pump; 36557 is for children younger than five, while 36558 is for patients age five or older.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
36557 Tunneled catheter Medicare reimbursement rates in Iowa
Report this code for tunneled central venous catheter placement in a child younger than five when the catheter has no subcutaneous port or pump. Compare 36557 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Iowa.
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 36557 in Iowa?
Iowa 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
$1146.33
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Iowa
One mapped payment locality.
Facility setting
$273.48
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Iowa
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.
Central venous access
About 36557: Tunneled central venous catheter placement under age five
Report this code for tunneled central venous catheter placement in a child younger than five when the catheter has no subcutaneous port or pump.
This service places a central venous catheter through a subcutaneous tunnel, with the catheter exiting the skin and no implanted port or pump. It is commonly used for young children needing durable access for treatments such as chemotherapy, parenteral nutrition, or prolonged intravenous therapy. Surgeons and other qualified proceduralists may perform the placement in a hospital or surgical setting.
Select the code based on the patient’s age on the date of the procedure and whether the device is tunneled and lacks a port or pump. Documentation should identify the patient’s age, catheter type, tunneled route, and placement details. CMS assigns a 10-day global period, so related postoperative visits during that period are included. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures at 50%. Modifier 50 applies to a bilateral procedure, paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documented medical necessity; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 36557
- Global period
- Minor procedure with a 10-day global period: related postoperative visits for 10 days are 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 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 RVU4.77 · 13%
- Practice expense (office) RVU31.74 · 84%
- Malpractice RVU1.28 · 3%
20
Medicare services in 2024 · #5916 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.
36557 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Iowa, from the same CMS release.
$1,218.76
Use 36560 for a tunneled central access device with a subcutaneous port in a patient younger than five. Code 36557 is for a catheter without a port or pump.
$197.86
Both are for patients younger than five, but 36555 describes a non-tunneled catheter; 36557 describes a tunneled catheter without a port or pump.
$218.48
Code 36556 is for non-tunneled central catheter placement in patients age five or older. Code 36557 is for tunneled placement in patients younger than five.
Compare 36557 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
Iowa →
Office / nonfacility
$1146.33
Facility
$273.48
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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 36557 in Iowa.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
4,506
- Code
- 36557
- Physician work
- 4.77
- Practice expense
- 31.74
- Malpractice
- 1.28
GPCI2026.csv
53
- Locality
- Iowa
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.915
- Malpractice
- 0.397
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 4.77 | × 1.000 | 4.7700 |
| Practice expense | 31.74 | × 0.915 | 29.0421 |
| Malpractice | 1.28 | × 0.397 | 0.5082 |
| Total RVUs | 34.3203 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Office / nonfacility rate, Iowa$1146.33
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Office / nonfacility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 4.77 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 31.74 | 0.915 |
| Malpractice | 1.28 | 0.397 |
(4.77 × 1 + 31.74 × 0.915 + 1.28 × 0.397) × $33.4009 = $1146.33
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 4.77 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 3.18 | 0.915 |
| Malpractice | 1.28 | 0.397 |
(4.77 × 1 + 3.18 × 0.915 + 1.28 × 0.397) × $33.4009 = $273.48
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.
36557 billing questions
How does this code differ from 36558?
Both describe tunneled central venous catheter placement without a port or pump. Use 36557 for a patient younger than five and 36558 for a patient age five or older.
Can this code be used for an implanted port?
No. It describes a tunneled catheter without a subcutaneous port or pump; code selection changes when the implanted device includes a port.
What documentation supports reporting 36557?
Document the patient’s age on the procedure date, the tunneled catheter placement, and that the device has no subcutaneous port or pump.
Are related postoperative visits separately paid during the global period?
Related postoperative visits during the 10-day global period are included in the procedure payment.
When is an assistant at surgery payable?
CMS allows assistant-at-surgery payment only when the record documents medical necessity. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted for this code.
How are other procedures in the same session paid?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures in that session are paid at 50%. For a bilateral procedure reported with modifier 50, CMS pays at 150%.
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.
4,50336522,,Photopheresis,A,,1.71,38.95,,0.50,,0.13,40.79,2.34,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50436555,,Insert non-tunnel cv cath,A,,1.88,4.35,,0.33,,0.16,6.39,2.37,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50536556,,Insert non-tunnel cv cath,A,,1.71,5.18,,0.38,,0.23,7.12,2.32,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50636557,,Insert tunneled cv cath,A,,4.77,31.74,,3.18,,1.28,37.79,9.23,0,010,0.10,0.80,0.10,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50736558,,Insert tunneled cv cath,A,,4.48,18.46,,1.84,,0.64,23.58,6.96,0,010,0.10,0.80,0.10,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50836560,,Insert tunneled cv cath,A,,5.89,32.76,,3.45,,1.57,40.22,10.91,0,010,0.10,0.80,0.10,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,50936561,,Insert tunneled cv cath,A,,5.65,22.22,,2.38,,0.95,28.82,8.98,0,010,0.10,0.80,0.10,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
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
5607202,LA,01,NEW ORLEANS,1.000,0.941,1.136