No office rate
Use 61156 for aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst. Use 61154 when the hematoma is extradural or subdural and is evacuated or drained.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
61156 Burr-hole aspiration Medicare reimbursement rates in Oregon
Reports neurosurgical burr-hole aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst, rather than drainage of an extra-axial collection or an abscess. Compare 61156 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Oregon.
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 61156 in Oregon?
Oregon 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
$1151.84–$1218.77
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.
Neurosurgery
About 61156: Intracerebral hematoma or cyst aspiration
Reports neurosurgical burr-hole aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst, rather than drainage of an extra-axial collection or an abscess.
A neurosurgeon creates a burr-hole opening in the skull and aspirates a hematoma or cyst located within brain tissue. The service is generally performed in a hospital operating room for a patient whose intracerebral collection requires operative aspiration; the operative record should identify the target and its intracerebral location. This code distinguishes aspiration of a hematoma or cyst within the brain from procedures directed at collections outside the brain or other lesion treatments.
Report the code when the documented procedure is burr-hole aspiration of the intracerebral target. The operative report should support the site, diagnosis, and aspiration performed. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. When multiple procedures are performed in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% multiple-procedure reduction. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 61156
- 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 adjustment does not apply; the descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery may be paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons paid only with supporting documentation.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU17.01 · 46%
- Practice expense (office) RVU12.52 · 34%
- Malpractice RVU7.12 · 19%
177
Medicare services in 2024 · #4436 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.
61156 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Oregon, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
61150 is directed to drainage of a brain abscess or cyst. 61156 describes aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst.
No office rate
61750 describes stereotactic biopsy, aspiration, or excision of an intracranial lesion. 61156 describes burr-hole aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst without that stereotactic service.
No office rate
61140 is for burr-hole or trephine biopsy of brain tissue or an intracranial lesion. 61156 is for aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst, not tissue sampling.
Compare 61156 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
Portland →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$1218.77
Rest Of Oregon →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$1151.84
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61156 billing questions
How does this differ from 61154?
61156 is for aspiration of a hematoma or cyst within brain tissue. 61154 addresses evacuation or drainage of an extradural or subdural hematoma.
When would 61150 be more appropriate?
61150 describes burr-hole drainage of a brain abscess or cyst. Choose based on the procedure performed and the documented target; 61156 specifies aspiration of an intracerebral hematoma or cyst.
What documentation supports 61156?
The operative report should identify the intracerebral location and hematoma or cyst, and describe aspiration through a burr hole.
Are related postoperative visits separately included?
The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care.
How are other procedures in the same session paid?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction when performed in the same session.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is 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.
6,74961150,,Bur hol/trph drg brn abs/cst,A,,18.43,13.82,NA,13.82,,7.76,40.01,40.01,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,1,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75061151,,Burr hole/treph sbsq tapping,A,,13.15,11.20,NA,11.20,,5.54,29.89,29.89,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75161154,,Burr hole w/evac&/drg hmtma,A,,16.64,14.89,NA,14.89,,6.99,38.52,38.52,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75261156,,Burr hol aspir hmtm/cst icer,A,,17.01,12.52,NA,12.52,,7.12,36.65,36.65,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75361210,,Burr hole implt ventr cath,A,,5.68,1.99,NA,1.99,,2.38,10.05,10.05,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75461215,,Ins subq rsvr pmp/nfs sys,A,,5.70,8.59,NA,8.59,,2.40,16.69,16.69,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,0,1,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,75561250,,Burr hole/treph sttl expl,A,,11.20,10.51,NA,10.51,,4.73,26.44,26.44,0,090,0.11,0.76,0.13,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00