77012 is used when CT guides needle placement; 77002 describes fluoroscopic guidance for that purpose.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
77012 CT guidance Medicare reimbursement rates in Texas
Report CT guidance when computed tomography is used to direct percutaneous needle placement, such as for a biopsy or aspiration. Compare 77012 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Texas.
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 77012 in Texas?
Texas has 8 payment localities in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the 8 payment areas shown below, using the same CMS release.
Office / nonfacility
$116.31–$126.74
8 of 8 localities have a supported rate.
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.
Where 77012 pays more and less in Texas
8 payment localities
$116.31 to $126.74
Radiology
About 77012: CT-guided needle placement
Report CT guidance when computed tomography is used to direct percutaneous needle placement, such as for a biopsy or aspiration.
This service covers CT imaging used to plan and guide a needle to a target, with images used to check the needle’s position during placement. Radiologists and interventional radiologists commonly perform it in hospital imaging departments, outpatient radiology centers, or other settings equipped for CT-guided procedures. Typical cases include directing a biopsy needle into a lung, liver, kidney, bone, or soft-tissue lesion. The biopsy, aspiration, or other needle procedure is distinct from the imaging guidance service.
Report 77012 when CT provides the guidance for needle placement, rather than fluoroscopy or MRI. Documentation should support the target, the use of CT to guide placement, and the imaging supervision and interpretation. CMS recognizes professional and technical components: modifier 26 identifies interpretation, modifier TC identifies the equipment and staff portion, and reporting the code without either modifier represents the global service. The separately priced components may be billed by different entities when each performs its portion.
CMS billing rules for 77012
- Professional and technical components
- Diagnostic test with a professional component (modifier 26, interpretation) and a technical component (modifier TC, equipment and staff); billing without a modifier is the global service.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU1.46 · 40%
- Practice expense (office) RVU2.12 · 58%
- Malpractice RVU0.10 · 3%
140.7K
Medicare services in 2024 · #465 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.
77012 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Texas, from the same CMS release.
77011 is for CT-guided stereotactic localization. Choose 77012 when CT guides needle placement for a procedure such as biopsy.
Ct guide for tissue ablation
77013 is for CT guidance of tissue ablation. 77012 covers CT guidance for needle placement for other interventions.
77021 describes MRI guidance for needle placement. Use 77012 when CT, rather than MRI, provides the guidance.
Compare 77012 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.
8 of 8 payment localities
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Austin | Office $126.74 | Facility Unavailable |
| Beaumont | Office $116.31 | Facility Unavailable |
| Brazoria | Office $121.93 | Facility Unavailable |
| Dallas | Office $122.60 | Facility Unavailable |
| Fort Worth | Office $121.93 | Facility Unavailable |
| Galveston | Office $122.24 | Facility Unavailable |
| Houston | Office $124.07 | Facility Unavailable |
| Rest Of Texas | Office $118.98 | Facility Unavailable |
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77012 billing questions
Does 77012 include the biopsy or aspiration?
No. It represents the CT guidance for needle placement; the biopsy, aspiration, or other intervention is a separate service when separately reportable.
When should 77012 be chosen instead of 77002?
Use 77012 when CT guides the needle. Code 77002 is for fluoroscopic needle guidance.
How are modifiers 26 and TC used?
Modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation component, and modifier TC identifies the technical component. Without either modifier, the claim represents the global service.
What documentation supports reporting 77012?
Document the target and procedure, use of CT to guide needle placement, and the imaging supervision and interpretation. The record should support the component billed.
Is 77012 used for CT-guided tissue ablation?
Use 77013 for CT guidance of tissue ablation. Use 77012 when CT is guiding needle placement for a different intervention, such as a biopsy.
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.
