No office rate
31720 identifies the initial airway-clearance service; 31725 identifies a subsequent service.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
31720 Airway clearance Medicare reimbursement rates in Vermont
Reports initial therapeutic suctioning of the tracheobronchial tree to clear obstructing secretions or other material without bronchoscopic aspiration. Compare 31720 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Vermont.
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 31720 in Vermont?
Vermont 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
$43.86
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Vermont
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.
Pulmonary procedure
About 31720: Initial tracheobronchial airway clearance
Reports initial therapeutic suctioning of the tracheobronchial tree to clear obstructing secretions or other material without bronchoscopic aspiration.
This service clears the tracheobronchial tree by therapeutic aspiration, commonly when retained mucus or other material is impairing airway patency or ventilation. A physician or other qualified practitioner may perform it at the bedside or in another acute-care setting, using an aspiration catheter through an artificial airway or by another appropriate nonbronchoscopic route. The clinical record should identify the airway problem, the material removed, and the therapeutic need for aspiration.
Use 31720 for the initial airway-clearance service; 31725 represents a subsequent service. The record should make clear which service was performed rather than counting each catheter pass as a separate encounter. The 0-day global period includes same-day preoperative and postoperative care. When multiple procedures occur in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for this service, and co-surgeon and team-surgery reporting are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 31720
- Global period
- Minor procedure with a 0-day global period: same-day preoperative and postoperative care is 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 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 RVU1.03 · 76%
- Practice expense (office) RVU0.24 · 18%
- Malpractice RVU0.09 · 7%
184
Medicare services in 2024 · #4391 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.
31720 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Vermont, from the same CMS release.
$301.46
Use 31645 when initial therapeutic aspiration is performed bronchoscopically; 31720 is for nonbronchoscopic airway clearance.
No office rate
31646 describes subsequent bronchoscopic therapeutic aspiration, while 31725 describes subsequent nonbronchoscopic airway clearance.
Compare 31720 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
Vermont →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$43.86
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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 31720 in Vermont.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
3,664
- Code
- 31720
- Physician work
- 1.03
- Practice expense
- 0.24
- Malpractice
- 0.09
GPCI2026.csv
105
- Locality
- Vermont
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.990
- Malpractice
- 0.506
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 1.03 | × 1.000 | 1.0300 |
| Practice expense | 0.24 | × 0.990 | 0.2376 |
| Malpractice | 0.09 | × 0.506 | 0.0455 |
| Total RVUs | 1.3131 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Vermont$43.86
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 1.03 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 0.24 | 0.99 |
| Malpractice | 0.09 | 0.506 |
(1.03 × 1 + 0.24 × 0.99 + 0.09 × 0.506) × $33.4009 = $43.86
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.
31720 billing questions
When should 31720 be reported instead of 31725?
Use 31720 for the initial therapeutic aspiration service and 31725 for a subsequent service. Documentation should distinguish the services performed.
How is this different from bronchoscopic aspiration?
31720 describes therapeutic airway clearance without bronchoscopic aspiration. When the therapeutic aspiration is performed through a bronchoscope, consider the bronchoscopic service represented by 31645 or 31646, as appropriate.
Can each catheter pass be billed as a separate unit?
The code identifies an initial airway-clearance service, not an individual catheter pass. Document the therapeutic service and the airway problem being treated.
Does modifier 50 apply when both sides are cleared?
No. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this airway-clearance service.
How are other procedures in the same session paid?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures in that session are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction. Same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included in the 0-day global period.
Can an assistant, co-surgeon, or surgical team be reported?
Medicare does not pay an assistant at surgery for 31720. Co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
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.
3,66131661,,Bronch thermoplsty 2/> lobes,A,,4.14,0.85,NA,0.85,,0.36,5.35,5.35,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,3,0,1,0,0,9,31622,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,6623170F,,Baselin flo cytometry b/4 tx,I,,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
3,66331717,,Bronchial brush biopsy,A,,2.07,6.93,,0.64,,0.18,9.18,2.89,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,66431720,,Clearance of airways,A,,1.03,0.24,NA,0.24,,0.09,1.36,1.36,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,66531725,,Clearance of airways,A,,1.67,0.30,NA,0.30,,0.14,2.11,2.11,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,66631730,,Intro windpipe wire/tube,A,,2.78,31.85,,0.66,,0.55,35.18,3.99,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,66731750,,Tracheoplasty cervical,A,,15.01,20.00,NA,20.00,,2.33,37.34,37.34,0,090,0.10,0.76,0.14,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
10204412,TX,18,HOUSTON,1.008,0.993,1.376
10304412,TX,99,REST OF TEXAS,1.000,0.949,0.903
10403502,UT,09,UTAH,1.000,0.940,0.898
10514512,VT,50,VERMONT,1.000,0.990,0.506
10611302,VA,00,VIRGINIA,1.000,0.983,0.706
10709202,VI,50,VIRGIN ISLANDS,1.000,1.011,0.985
10802402,WA,02,SEATTLE (KING CNTY),1.050,1.227,0.817