No office rate
Choose 29851 when fixation or repair is performed for the spine or tuberosity fracture; 29850 is for treatment without internal fixation.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
29851 Knee fracture repair Medicare reimbursement rates in Rhode Island
Reports arthroscopically assisted operative repair of a knee intercondylar spine or tuberosity fracture when fixation or repair is performed. Compare 29851 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 29851 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
No supported rate
Facility setting
$871.18
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Rhode Island
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.
Orthopedic surgery
About 29851: Arthroscopic knee fracture fixation
Reports arthroscopically assisted operative repair of a knee intercondylar spine or tuberosity fracture when fixation or repair is performed.
Orthopedic surgeons use 29851 for arthroscopically assisted operative treatment of a fracture involving the knee’s intercondylar spine, also called the tibial eminence, and/or tibial tuberosity, when fixation or repair is performed. A familiar example is arthroscopic reduction and fixation of a displaced tibial spine avulsion. The service is typically performed in a hospital operating room or ambulatory surgery center; it is distinct from a diagnostic-only knee scope and from treatment of a tibial plateau fracture.
Report the service for the treated knee, supported by documentation of the fracture site and the arthroscopic reduction, fixation, or repair performed. Diagnostic arthroscopy of that knee is integral to the operative service. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. In a same-session multiple-procedure setting, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment and co-surgeons are permitted; team surgery is not.
CMS billing rules for 29851
- 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 procedure with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
- Assistant at surgery
- Assistant at surgery may be paid.
- Co-surgeons
- Co-surgeons permitted.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU12.93 · 50%
- Practice expense (office) RVU10.12 · 39%
- Malpractice RVU2.75 · 11%
18
Medicare services in 2024 · #5970 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.
29851 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Rhode Island, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
29855 addresses an arthroscopically treated unicondylar proximal tibial plateau fracture, rather than a knee spine or tuberosity fracture.
No office rate
29856 is for arthroscopically aided treatment of a bicondylar proximal tibial plateau fracture.
No office rate
Use 27535 for open treatment of a unicondylar proximal tibial plateau fracture; 29851 is arthroscopically assisted treatment of a spine or tuberosity fracture.
Compare 29851 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
Unavailable
Facility
$871.18
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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 29851 in Rhode Island.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
3,343
- Code
- 29851
- Physician work
- 12.93
- Practice expense
- 10.12
- Malpractice
- 2.75
GPCI2026.csv
92
- Locality
- Rhode Island
- Physician work
- 1.019
- Practice expense
- 1.033
- Malpractice
- 0.892
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 12.93 | × 1.019 | 13.1757 |
| Practice expense | 10.12 | × 1.033 | 10.4540 |
| Malpractice | 2.75 | × 0.892 | 2.4530 |
| Total RVUs | 26.0826 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Rhode Island$871.18
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 12.93 | 1.019 |
| Practice expense | 10.12 | 1.033 |
| Malpractice | 2.75 | 0.892 |
(12.93 × 1.019 + 10.12 × 1.033 + 2.75 × 0.892) × $33.4009 = $871.18
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.
29851 billing questions
How does 29851 differ from 29850?
Use 29851 when the arthroscopically assisted fracture treatment includes internal fixation or repair. Code 29850 describes the corresponding treatment without internal fixation.
Can diagnostic knee arthroscopy be billed separately?
Diagnostic arthroscopy of the same knee is integral to the operative fracture treatment and is not separately reported for that service.
Is the code reported per fracture fragment or per knee?
Report the operative service for the treated knee; the number of fragments or fixation devices does not create additional units.
What documentation supports 29851?
Document the fracture location and the arthroscopically assisted reduction, fixation, or repair performed. The record should distinguish a spine or tuberosity fracture from a tibial plateau fracture.
Can modifier 50 be used for bilateral treatment?
CMS identifies this as a bilateral procedure; bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
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.
3,34029847,,Wrist arthroscopy/surgery,A,,7.04,6.95,NA,6.95,,1.49,15.48,15.48,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,3,1,2,0,0,9,29840,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34129848,,Wrist endoscopy/surgery,A,,6.23,7.10,NA,7.10,,1.21,14.54,14.54,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34229850,,Knee arthroscopy/surgery,A,,8.06,8.00,NA,8.00,,1.71,17.77,17.77,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,0,2,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34329851,,Knee arthroscopy/surgery,A,,12.93,10.12,NA,10.12,,2.75,25.80,25.80,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,2,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34429855,,Tibial arthroscopy/surgery,A,,10.49,9.20,NA,9.20,,2.16,21.85,21.85,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,2,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34529856,,Tibial arthroscopy/surgery,A,,13.92,10.59,NA,10.59,,2.97,27.48,27.48,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,2,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,34629860,,Hip arthroscopy dx,A,,8.78,7.95,NA,7.95,,1.69,18.42,18.42,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,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