$18.24
15853 is for removing sutures or staples, but not both. 15854 applies when both types are removed without anesthesia.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
15853 Closure removal Medicare reimbursement rates in Rhode Island
Report 15853 for supervised removal of sutures or staples without anesthesia, as an add-on within the global period of a primary procedure. Compare 15853 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Rhode Island.
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 15853 in Rhode Island?
Rhode Island 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
$13.75
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Rhode Island
One mapped payment locality.
Facility setting
No 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.
Postoperative care
About 15853: Suture or staple removal without anesthesia
Report 15853 for supervised removal of sutures or staples without anesthesia, as an add-on within the global period of a primary procedure.
Code 15853 covers removal of sutures or staples without anesthesia, typically during postoperative wound follow-up after an incision has healed sufficiently. In an office, a nurse or other clinical staff member may perform the task under physician supervision. The code applies when one closure type—sutures or staples—is removed, not both.
Report 15853 only as an add-on with a primary procedure; it is not a stand-alone service. CMS treats it as an incident-to service, so it may be billed only when performed under physician supervision, and payment falls within the primary procedure’s global period. CMS assigns the service zero physician work RVUs. Documentation should identify the original procedure, wound site, closure type removed, and that removal did not require anesthesia. Use 15854 when both sutures and staples are removed, or 15851 when removal requires anesthesia.
CMS billing rules for 15853
- Global period
- Add-on code: billed only together with a primary procedure and paid within that procedure's global period.
- Professional and technical components
- Incident-to service: billed only when performed under physician supervision.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU0.00 · 0%
- Practice expense (office) RVU0.39 · 98%
- Malpractice RVU0.01 · 3%
37.9K
Medicare services in 2024 · #892 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.
15853 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Rhode Island, from the same CMS release.
Compare 15853 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
Rhode Island →
Office / nonfacility
$13.75
Facility
Unavailable
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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 15853 in Rhode Island.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
1,586
- Code
- 15853
- Physician work
- 0.00
- Practice expense
- 0.39
- Malpractice
- 0.01
GPCI2026.csv
92
- Locality
- Rhode Island
- Physician work
- 1.019
- Practice expense
- 1.033
- Malpractice
- 0.892
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 0.00 | × 1.019 | 0.0000 |
| Practice expense | 0.39 | × 1.033 | 0.4029 |
| Malpractice | 0.01 | × 0.892 | 0.0089 |
| Total RVUs | 0.4118 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Office / nonfacility rate, Rhode Island$13.75
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Office / nonfacility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 0 | 1.019 |
| Practice expense | 0.39 | 1.033 |
| Malpractice | 0.01 | 0.892 |
(0 × 1.019 + 0.39 × 1.033 + 0.01 × 0.892) × $33.4009 = $13.75
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.
15853 billing questions
When should 15853 be chosen over 15854?
Use 15853 when removing sutures or staples, but not both. When both types are removed during the service, use 15854.
Can 15853 be billed by itself?
No. It is an add-on code and must be reported with a primary procedure; its payment is within that procedure’s global period.
Who may perform the removal?
A physician-supervised clinical staff member may perform it as an incident-to service. The claim is billable only when the required physician supervision is present.
What supports reporting 15853?
Document the primary procedure, the wound site, whether sutures or staples were removed, and that anesthesia was not required.
How does 15853 differ from 15851?
15853 describes removal without anesthesia. Use 15851 when removal requires anesthesia.
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.
1,58315847,,Exc skin abd add-on,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,YYY,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58415851,,Removal sutr/staple req anes,A,,1.07,0.55,NA,0.55,,0.13,1.75,1.75,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58515852,,Dressing change not for burn,A,,0.84,0.20,NA,0.20,,0.12,1.16,1.16,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58615853,,Removal sutr/stapl xreq anes,A,,0.00,0.39,,0.39,NA,0.01,0.40,0.40,5,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58715854,,Removal sutr&stapl xreq anes,A,,0.00,0.52,,0.52,NA,0.01,0.53,0.53,5,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58815860,,Iv njx tst vasc flo flap/grf,A,,1.90,0.52,NA,0.52,,0.37,2.79,2.79,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
1,58915876,,Suction lipectomy head&neck,R,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
8912502,PA,01,METROPOLITAN PHILADELPHIA,1.018,1.041,1.193
9012502,PA,99,REST OF PENNSYLVANIA,1.000,0.918,0.945
9109202,PR,20,PUERTO RICO,1.000,1.011,0.985
9214412,RI,01,RHODE ISLAND,1.019,1.033,0.892
9311202,SC,01,SOUTH CAROLINA,1.000,0.924,0.850
9403402,SD,02,SOUTH DAKOTA**,1.000,1.000,0.336
9510312,TN,35,TENNESSEE,1.000,0.909,0.537