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CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01

71270 Chest CT Medicare reimbursement rates in Utah

Reports a diagnostic chest CT with images obtained before and after contrast when the clinical question requires both phases in one examination. Compare 71270 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Utah.

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 71270 in Utah?

Utah 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

$186.30

1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.

Payment area: Utah

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.

Find 71270 in your payment locality →

Diagnostic imaging

About 71270: Chest CT without and with contrast

Reports a diagnostic chest CT with images obtained before and after contrast when the clinical question requires both phases in one examination.

This service is a diagnostic CT examination of the chest that includes an unenhanced image acquisition followed by imaging after contrast administration. Radiologists commonly interpret it for evaluation of thoracic abnormalities such as a mass or other finding that needs assessment across both phases. It is performed in hospital imaging departments and outpatient radiology centers, with technologists operating the scanner and a qualified practitioner interpreting the images.

Report 71270 when the ordered and performed examination includes both the unenhanced and contrast-enhanced phases; do not separately report 71250 and 71260 for those phases of the same examination. The order and report should support the diagnostic indication and the use of both phases. The global service includes the interpretation and the technical work; modifier 26 identifies the professional interpretation, while modifier TC identifies the equipment and staff portion. CMS applies the diagnostic imaging multiple procedure reduction to both the professional and technical components when applicable.

CMS billing rules for 71270

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.
Multiple procedures
Diagnostic imaging multiple procedure reduction applies to the technical and professional components.

Where the value comes from

  • Work RVU1.22 · 21%
  • Practice expense (office) RVU4.55 · 78%
  • Malpractice RVU0.09 · 2%

60K

Medicare services in 2024 · #713 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.

71270 compared with similar codes

Office rates for Utah, from the same CMS release.

71250

Chest CT

Diagnostic, without contrast

$126.65

71250 is for chest CT without contrast. Choose 71270 when the examination includes both unenhanced and contrast-enhanced imaging.

71260

Chest CT with contrast

Contrast-enhanced images only

$158.81

71260 is for chest CT with contrast only. Choose 71270 when unenhanced images are also obtained as part of the same diagnostic examination.

71271

Lung screening CT

Low-dose, without contrast

$130.09

71271 is for low-dose lung cancer screening. Use 71270 for a diagnostic chest CT with both unenhanced and contrast-enhanced phases.

71275

Ct angiography chest

No office rate

71275 describes chest CT angiography. Use 71270 for the combined-phase diagnostic chest CT protocol rather than an angiographic study.

Compare 71270 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

Office and facility base rates · shared scale starting at $0
  • Utah →

    Office / nonfacility

    $186.30

    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 71270 in Utah.

PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv

7,916

Code
71270
Physician work
1.22
Practice expense
4.55
Malpractice
0.09

GPCI2026.csv

104

Locality
Utah
Physician work
1.000
Practice expense
0.940
Malpractice
0.898
Office / nonfacility calculation for 71270 in Utah
ComponentRVULocality factorAdjusted
Physician work1.22× 1.0001.2200
Practice expense4.55× 0.9404.2770
Malpractice0.09× 0.8980.0808
Total RVUs5.5778
Conversion factor× 33.4009

Office / nonfacility rate, Utah$186.30

Values as parsed from CMS release RVU26D, effective 2026-10-01. The amount is rounded to the nearest cent only at the end.
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula

Office / nonfacility

Office / nonfacility calculation inputs
ComponentRVULocal GPCI
Work1.221
Practice expense4.550.94
Malpractice0.090.898

(1.22 × 1 + 4.55 × 0.94 + 0.09 × 0.898) × $33.4009 = $186.30

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.

71270 billing questions

When should 71270 be chosen instead of 71250 or 71260?

Use 71270 when the chest CT includes both an unenhanced acquisition and imaging after contrast. Use 71250 for an examination without contrast, and 71260 when it is performed with contrast only.

Can 71250 and 71260 be billed separately for the same examination?

Do not split the unenhanced and contrast phases of one examination into those two codes. Report 71270 for the combined protocol.

What do modifiers 26 and TC represent?

Modifier 26 reports the professional interpretation. Modifier TC reports the technical service, including equipment and staff; without either modifier, the claim represents the global service.

Does the multiple procedure reduction affect both components?

Yes. CMS applies the diagnostic imaging multiple procedure reduction to the technical and professional components.

How does 71270 differ from chest CT angiography?

71270 describes a diagnostic chest CT with unenhanced and contrast-enhanced phases. Use 71275 when the examination is CT angiography of the chest.

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.

RVUs for 71270PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 7,916 (RVU26D)
Geographic factors for UtahGPCI2026.csv, line 104 (RVU26D)