Billing code 97035: Therapeutic ultrasoundMedicare rate & RVUs in Michigan
Therapeutic ultrasound applies acoustic energy to soft tissue with a clinician in constant attendance and is reported in timed 15-minute units.
Medicare pays $13.80–$14.35 for 97035 in the office in Michigan, from Rest Of Michigan to Detroit. Which amount applies depends on the service address.
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 97035 covers
Therapeutic ultrasound delivers acoustic energy to soft tissue through coupling gel and a moving handheld transducer. Physical therapists, occupational therapists, their assistants, and physicians may use it for localized tendon or muscle symptoms and joint stiffness, commonly in office-based outpatient therapy. The treating clinician remains with the patient throughout application rather than leaving a device running unattended. Phonophoresis, in which ultrasound helps deliver a topical medication, is reported with this code when ultrasound is the delivery method.
Assign 15-minute units using Medicare's timed-service rules, including total timed-treatment minutes when other timed services occur during the visit. Record the actual ultrasound minutes, treated area, treatment settings, and skilled purpose linked to the therapy plan. Use the therapy discipline modifier, GP, GO, or GN, as appropriate. This therapy service has no separately reportable professional or technical component; modifiers 26 and TC are not used. Under the therapy multiple procedure payment reduction, Medicare reduces the practice-expense portion for the second and subsequent therapy units on the same day.
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 97035 pays more and less in Michigan
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Detroit | $14.35 | Unavailable |
| Rest Of Michigan | $13.80 | Unavailable |
How the 97035 rate is calculated
Each of 97035’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 · 97035
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work0.21
0.21 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense0.21
0.21 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.01
0.01 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
0.4300
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$14.36
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 97035
The CMS indicators that decide how 97035 is paid alongside other services.
CMS payment indicators · 97035
Therapeutic ultrasound
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | XXX | The global surgery concept doesn’t apply. |
| Multiple procedures | 5 | Therapy reduction: practice expense of the second and later units is reduced. |
| 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 | 7 | Therapy service: the split doesn’t apply. |
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier CQ · payment effect
With and without the modifier
97035 without CQ · national office
$14.36
Therapeutic ultrasound
97035-CQ · Allowed amount unchanged
$14.36
Medicare cuts its own payment by 15% after the patient’s 20% coinsurance; the allowed amount stays the same. On $100 allowed: $20 coinsurance, then Medicare pays $68 instead of $80.
97035 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
5 codes, side by side
How to choose
- 97024Diathermy
- Diathermy uses electromagnetic energy and is a supervised, untimed modality. Therapeutic ultrasound uses sound waves applied with a handheld transducer and is reported in timed units.
- 97033Iontophoresis
- Choose iontophoresis when electrical current delivers medication. Choose therapeutic ultrasound when sound waves deliver the medication, as in phonophoresis, or when ultrasound is applied without medication.
- 97032Electrical stimulation
- Attended electrical stimulation applies current and requires constant clinician attendance. Therapeutic ultrasound applies acoustic energy through a moving transducer; do not assign the same treatment minutes to both codes.
- 76882Extremity ultrasound
- Code 76882 is a limited diagnostic ultrasound examination of an extremity that produces images for interpretation. Therapeutic ultrasound treats tissue rather than producing diagnostic images.
97035 billing questions
How are units of this code counted for Medicare?
Medicare uses total timed-service minutes for the visit to determine the allowable units, then assigns units to the timed services performed. Count only minutes of ultrasound actually delivered with the clinician in attendance toward this code.
Is phonophoresis billed with this code or with iontophoresis?
Report phonophoresis with 97035 when ultrasound is the medication delivery method. Iontophoresis uses electrical current to deliver medication and is reported with 97033.
Can a combination ultrasound and electrical stimulation treatment be billed as two timed services?
Do not count the same treatment minutes toward both codes. When both energies are delivered simultaneously through one head, those minutes support only one timed service.
Does a professional or technical component modifier apply?
No. This therapy service has no separately reportable professional or technical component, so modifiers 26 and TC are not used. Use the therapy discipline modifier appropriate to the plan of care.
What documentation supports medical necessity?
Document the treated area, ultrasound settings, minutes of attended treatment, and why skilled treatment is needed. Link the treatment purpose to functional goals in the therapy plan.
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
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