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CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01

43259 Endoscopic ultrasound Medicare reimbursement rates in Ohio

Reports upper gastrointestinal endoscopic ultrasound to assess the digestive tract wall and nearby structures, such as the pancreas, bile ducts, and lymph nodes. Compare 43259 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Ohio.

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 43259 in Ohio?

Ohio 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

$194.26

1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.

Payment area: Ohio

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.

Find 43259 in your payment locality →

Gastroenterology endoscopy

About 43259: Upper gastrointestinal endoscopic ultrasound examination

Reports upper gastrointestinal endoscopic ultrasound to assess the digestive tract wall and nearby structures, such as the pancreas, bile ducts, and lymph nodes.

A gastroenterologist or other qualified endoscopist uses an ultrasound-equipped endoscope to examine the upper digestive tract and structures next to it. Typical indications include characterizing a subepithelial mass, evaluating a pancreatic lesion or cyst, assessing bile duct abnormalities, and staging nearby lymph nodes. The examination may cover the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum or jejunum as clinically appropriate, in a hospital outpatient department or endoscopy center.

Report 43259 for the diagnostic ultrasound examination without the separately coded EUS-guided tissue sampling or therapeutic maneuver. Document the indication, areas examined, ultrasound findings, and any sampling or intervention performed; when tissue is obtained under EUS guidance, consider the applicable sampling code, such as 43238. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When related endoscopies occur together, endoscopy-family pricing applies. Modifier 50 is inappropriate because the examination follows upper-GI anatomy rather than paired sides. Medicare payment is restricted for an assistant at surgery; co-surgeon and team-surgery reporting are not permitted.

CMS billing rules for 43259

Global period
Minor procedure with a 0-day global period: same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included.
Multiple procedures
Endoscopy family pricing applies when related endoscopies are performed together.
Bilateral procedures
Bilateral adjustment does not apply; the descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
Assistant at surgery
Statutory restriction: assistant at surgery is not paid.
Co-surgeons
Co-surgeons not permitted.
Team surgery
Team surgery not permitted.

Where the value comes from

  • Work RVU3.94 · 66%
  • Practice expense (office) RVU1.58 · 27%
  • Malpractice RVU0.43 · 7%

32.6K

Medicare services in 2024 · #940 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.

43259 compared with similar codes

Office rates for Ohio, from the same CMS release.

43238

EUS-guided biopsy

Limited upper GI examination

No office rate

Choose 43259 for diagnostic EUS without tissue acquisition. Choose 43238 when EUS-guided fine-needle sampling is performed.

43253

EUS-guided procedure

Transmural injection or marking

No office rate

43259 reports diagnostic ultrasound examination; 43253 describes an EUS-guided transmural injection or marking procedure.

43260

ERCP

Brushing or washing

No office rate

43259 uses ultrasound imaging of the upper-GI tract and adjacent structures. 43260 is an ERCP service involving endoscopic access to the biliary or pancreatic ducts.

Compare 43259 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

Office and facility base rates · shared scale starting at $0
  • Ohio →

    Office / nonfacility

    Unavailable

    Facility

    $194.26

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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 43259 in Ohio.

PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv

5,186

Code
43259
Physician work
3.94
Practice expense
1.58
Malpractice
0.43

GPCI2026.csv

85

Locality
Ohio
Physician work
1.000
Practice expense
0.913
Malpractice
1.008
Facility calculation for 43259 in Ohio
ComponentRVULocality factorAdjusted
Physician work3.94× 1.0003.9400
Practice expense1.58× 0.9131.4425
Malpractice0.43× 1.0080.4334
Total RVUs5.8160
Conversion factor× 33.4009

Facility rate, Ohio$194.26

Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula

Facility

Facility calculation inputs
ComponentRVULocal GPCI
Work3.941
Practice expense1.580.913
Malpractice0.431.008

(3.94 × 1 + 1.58 × 0.913 + 0.43 × 1.008) × $33.4009 = $194.26

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.

43259 billing questions

When should 43259 be reported instead of 43238?

Use 43259 for diagnostic EUS without needle sampling. When EUS-guided tissue sampling is performed, 43238 describes the sampling service and includes the ultrasound examination.

Can a separate EGD service be billed with 43259?

The examination is performed endoscopically, and related endoscopies performed together are subject to endoscopy-family pricing. Document each service performed and follow the applicable family code selection.

Is modifier 50 appropriate for 43259?

No. The upper-GI examination follows digestive tract anatomy, not paired right and left sides.

What documentation supports 43259?

Record the clinical indication, anatomic regions examined, and ultrasound findings. Clearly identify any EUS-guided tissue sampling or therapeutic maneuver because it may require a different code.

Can an assistant, co-surgeon, or surgical team be reported?

Medicare payment is restricted for an assistant at surgery for this service. Co-surgeon and team-surgery reporting are not permitted.

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.

RVUs for 43259PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 5,186 (RVU26D)
Geographic factors for OhioGPCI2026.csv, line 85 (RVU26D)