No office rate
Use 44015 for needle-catheter decompression. Code 44021 describes small-bowel decompression by an incision.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
44015 Bowel decompression Medicare reimbursement rates in Vermont
Reports needle-catheter placement into bowel for decompression, sometimes with irrigation, as an add-on during a related primary procedure. Compare 44015 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 44015 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
$116.15
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.
Intestinal surgery
About 44015: Needle-catheter bowel decompression
Reports needle-catheter placement into bowel for decompression, sometimes with irrigation, as an add-on during a related primary procedure.
This service involves placing a needle catheter into the bowel to relieve distention by allowing contents or gas to escape; irrigation may also be performed. A cecostomy is a representative example. Surgeons typically perform the placement during an abdominal operation when bowel decompression is needed as part of the operative care.
Report 44015 only with a primary procedure; it is not a standalone service. The operative note should identify the bowel site, catheter placement, decompression performed, any irrigation, and the primary procedure performed in the same operative episode. CMS treats payment for this add-on as part of the primary procedure’s global period. Do not report it as a separate primary service or as a later follow-up procedure.
CMS billing rules for 44015
- Global period
- Add-on code: billed only together with a primary procedure and paid within that procedure's global period.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU2.55 · 67%
- Practice expense (office) RVU0.62 · 16%
- Malpractice RVU0.62 · 16%
1.4K
Medicare services in 2024 · #2708 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.
44015 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Vermont, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
Code 44020 describes an incision of small bowel; 44015 is specifically for needle-catheter placement for decompression.
No office rate
Code 44025 describes an incision of large bowel. Code 44015 reports needle-catheter decompression, not a bowel incision.
Compare 44015 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
$116.15
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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 44015 in Vermont.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
5,326
- Code
- 44015
- Physician work
- 2.55
- Practice expense
- 0.62
- Malpractice
- 0.62
GPCI2026.csv
105
- Locality
- Vermont
- Physician work
- 1.000
- Practice expense
- 0.990
- Malpractice
- 0.506
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 2.55 | × 1.000 | 2.5500 |
| Practice expense | 0.62 | × 0.990 | 0.6138 |
| Malpractice | 0.62 | × 0.506 | 0.3137 |
| Total RVUs | 3.4775 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Facility rate, Vermont$116.15
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 2.55 | 1 |
| Practice expense | 0.62 | 0.99 |
| Malpractice | 0.62 | 0.506 |
(2.55 × 1 + 0.62 × 0.99 + 0.62 × 0.506) × $33.4009 = $116.15
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.
44015 billing questions
Can 44015 be reported by itself?
No. It is an add-on code and must be reported with a primary procedure.
What documentation supports 44015?
Document the bowel site, needle-catheter placement, the decompression performed, whether irrigation was done, and the associated primary procedure.
How does 44015 differ from 44021?
44015 reports decompression through needle-catheter placement. Code 44021 describes a small-bowel decompression approach involving an incision.
Is catheter placement included in the primary procedure?
CMS identifies 44015 as an add-on, so report it with a primary procedure when the separately described catheter-placement service is performed and documented.
How does the global period affect 44015?
CMS pays this add-on within the primary procedure’s global period. It is not a separate follow-up service.
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.
5,32344005,,Freeing of bowel adhesion,A,,18.00,8.01,NA,8.01,,4.54,30.55,30.55,0,090,0.09,0.81,0.10,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,3244400F,,Rehab thxpy options w/pt,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
5,32544010,,Incision of small bowel,A,,13.90,6.89,NA,6.89,,2.64,23.43,23.43,0,090,0.09,0.81,0.10,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,32644015,,Insert needle cath bowel,A,,2.55,0.62,NA,0.62,,0.62,3.79,3.79,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,32744020,,Explore small intestine,A,,15.81,7.56,NA,7.56,,4.03,27.40,27.40,0,090,0.09,0.81,0.10,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,32844021,,Decompress small bowel,A,,15.90,7.35,NA,7.35,,3.96,27.21,27.21,0,090,0.09,0.81,0.10,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
5,32944025,,Incision of large bowel,A,,16.10,7.50,NA,7.50,,3.93,27.53,27.53,0,090,0.09,0.81,0.10,2,0,2,1,0,9,,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