$960.60–$1,053.91
Choose 15836 for the upper arm and 15837 for the forearm or hand. The operative site determines which code describes the excision.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
15836 Skin excision Medicare reimbursement rates in Massachusetts
Reports surgical removal of redundant skin from the upper arm, commonly during brachioplasty after substantial weight loss or when excess tissue causes functional problems. Compare 15836 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Massachusetts.
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 15836 in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts 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
$738.24–$797.86
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.
Plastic surgery
About 15836: Excision of excessive upper-arm skin
Reports surgical removal of redundant skin from the upper arm, commonly during brachioplasty after substantial weight loss or when excess tissue causes functional problems.
This service removes excess skin from the upper arm and closes the resulting wound, typically as part of brachioplasty. Plastic surgeons commonly perform it in a hospital or ambulatory surgical setting for patients with substantial upper-arm skin redundancy, including after major weight loss. The site must be the upper arm; removal involving the forearm or hand is described by a different code.
Report the service for the operative work performed, with documentation identifying the upper-arm site, the extent of skin removed, and the clinical reason for surgery. This major surgery code includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. For bilateral surgery, modifier 50 is paid at 150%. An assistant at surgery is paid only when medical necessity is documented; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 15836
- 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
- 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 RVU10.34 · 47%
- Practice expense (office) RVU9.56 · 44%
- Malpractice RVU1.92 · 9%
94
Medicare services in 2024 · #4924 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.
15836 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Massachusetts, from the same CMS release.
$980.61–$1,073.05
15839 describes excessive skin excision in another area not specified by a site-specific code. For an upper-arm excision, use 15836.
15830
No office rateExc excessive skin abdomen
15830 describes excess skin excision of the abdomen, not the upper arm. Select the code that matches the treated body site.
Compare 15836 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
Metropolitan Boston →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$797.86
Rest Of Massachusetts →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$738.24
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15836 billing questions
When should 15836 be selected instead of 15837?
Use 15836 for removal of excessive skin from the upper arm. Use 15837 when the treated site is the forearm or hand.
Does 15836 include the related postoperative visits?
Yes. Its 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
How is bilateral upper-arm surgery reported?
Report bilateral surgery with modifier 50. CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%.
Can an assistant surgeon be paid for 15836?
Assistant-at-surgery payment requires documentation of medical necessity. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
What happens when 15836 is performed with another procedure in the same session?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple procedure reduction, with payment at 50%.
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.
1,57215833,,Exc excessive skin leg,A,,11.60,10.14,NA,10.14,,2.15,23.89,23.89,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57315834,,Exc excessive skin hip,A,,11.87,10.24,NA,10.24,,2.19,24.30,24.30,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57415835,,Exc excessive skin buttock,A,,12.67,10.27,NA,10.27,,2.35,25.29,25.29,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57515836,,Exc excessive skin arm,A,,10.34,9.56,NA,9.56,,1.92,21.82,21.82,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,1,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57615837,,Exc excsv skin forearm/hand,A,,9.31,17.02,,8.67,,1.73,28.06,19.71,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57715838,,Exc excsv submental fat pad,A,,8.04,8.44,NA,8.44,,1.48,17.96,17.96,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,57815839,,Exc excessive skn other area,A,,10.24,16.54,,8.25,,1.93,28.71,20.42,0,090,0.10,0.71,0.19,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00