$779.09–$875.52
Choose 32550 for a cuffed catheter placed through a subcutaneous tunnel for ongoing drainage. Code 32556 describes non-tunneled catheter insertion without imaging guidance.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
32550 Pleural catheter Medicare reimbursement rates in Pennsylvania
Report tunneled pleural catheter placement when a cuffed, indwelling catheter is inserted to manage recurrent fluid in the pleural space. Compare 32550 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Pennsylvania.
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 32550 in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania 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
$730.25–$815.37
2 of 2 localities have a supported rate.
Facility setting
$177.42–$188.46
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.
Pulmonary procedures
About 32550: Tunneled pleural catheter placement
Report tunneled pleural catheter placement when a cuffed, indwelling catheter is inserted to manage recurrent fluid in the pleural space.
This service places a cuffed catheter through a subcutaneous tunnel into the pleural space, leaving it in place for repeated drainage. Pulmonologists, thoracic surgeons, and interventional radiologists commonly perform the procedure for recurrent pleural effusions, including malignant effusions, in hospital outpatient or office settings. The tunneled route and cuff distinguish this device from a temporary pleural drain.
Select the code when the documentation supports placement of an indwelling tunneled catheter with a cuff, rather than a non-tunneled catheter or a one-time pleural aspiration. Record the indication, catheter type and placement, and the pleural space treated. CMS assigns a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. Assistant-at-surgery services are not paid; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 32550
- Global period
- Minor procedure with a 0-day global period: same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included.
- 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 RVU3.82 · 16%
- Practice expense (office) RVU19.13 · 82%
- Malpractice RVU0.51 · 2%
13.2K
Medicare services in 2024 · #1331 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.
32550 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Pennsylvania, from the same CMS release.
$603.47–$673.88
Choose 32550 for tunneled, cuffed indwelling access. Code 32557 describes non-tunneled pleural catheter insertion with imaging guidance.
No office rate
Code 32551 describes insertion of a chest tube. Use 32550 when the procedure places an indwelling tunneled pleural catheter with a cuff.
$182.17–$198.47
Code 32550 is for catheter placement; 32552 is for removal of an indwelling tunneled pleural catheter.
Compare 32550 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 Philadelphia →
Office / nonfacility
$815.37
Facility
$188.46
Rest Of Pennsylvania →
Office / nonfacility
$730.25
Facility
$177.42
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32550 billing questions
How does this differ from codes 32556 and 32557?
Code 32550 describes placement of an indwelling tunneled catheter with a cuff. Codes 32556 and 32557 describe pleural catheter insertion without that tunneled-cuff distinction, with imaging status distinguishing those two codes.
When would a pleural aspiration code be more appropriate?
Use 32554 or 32555 for aspiration of pleural fluid rather than placement of a catheter intended to remain for repeated drainage. The aspiration codes differ according to imaging guidance.
Is same-day preoperative or postoperative care separately included?
CMS assigns 32550 a 0-day global period. Same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included in the procedure.
Can an assistant, co-surgeon, or surgical team be paid?
CMS does not pay for an assistant at surgery for this code. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
What documentation supports reporting 32550?
Document the recurrent pleural-fluid indication and that a cuffed catheter was placed through a tunnel and left indwelling in the pleural space. A temporary drain or one-time aspiration supports a different service.
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.
3,72632507,,Wedge resect of lung diag,A,,2.93,0.58,NA,0.58,,0.72,4.23,4.23,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,7273250F,,Nonprim loc anat bx site tum,M,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,9,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,9,9,9,9,9,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,72832540,,Removal of lung lesion,A,,29.59,11.87,NA,11.87,,7.45,48.91,48.91,0,090,0.10,0.76,0.14,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,72932550,,Insert pleural cath,A,,3.82,19.13,,1.10,,0.51,23.46,5.43,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,73032551,,Insertion of chest tube,A,,2.96,0.77,NA,0.77,,0.55,4.28,4.28,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,73132552,,Remove lung catheter,A,,2.47,2.88,,1.59,,0.36,5.71,4.42,0,010,0.10,0.80,0.10,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,73232553,,Ins mark thor for rt perq,A,,3.46,10.87,,0.71,,0.38,14.71,4.55,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00