No office rate
27332 is for open removal involving one meniscus; 27333 is for open removal involving both the medial and lateral menisci.
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CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
27332 Knee meniscectomy Medicare reimbursement rates in Virginia
Reports open knee-joint surgery to remove meniscal cartilage from one meniscus, rather than arthroscopic treatment or removal of both menisci. Compare 27332 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Virginia.
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 27332 in Virginia?
Virginia has 2 payment localities in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the 2 payment areas shown below, using the same CMS release.
Office / nonfacility
No supported rate
Facility setting
$592.95–$686.40
2 of 2 localities have a 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.
Orthopedic surgery
About 27332: Open knee meniscectomy, one meniscus
Reports open knee-joint surgery to remove meniscal cartilage from one meniscus, rather than arthroscopic treatment or removal of both menisci.
An orthopedic surgeon performs an open arthrotomy of the knee and removes meniscal cartilage from one meniscus, medial or lateral. The service is used for a meniscal tear or other meniscal problem treated through an open joint approach, commonly in a hospital operating room. The target is the knee’s meniscus, not the articular cartilage covering the ends of the bones. Arthroscopic meniscectomy is coded differently.
Report 27332 when the operative record supports open removal from one meniscus; documentation should identify the approach and the meniscus treated. When both medial and lateral menisci are removed, consider 27333 instead. Medicare assigns a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 27332
- 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 paid only with supporting documentation.
- Team surgery
- Team surgery not permitted.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU8.25 · 45%
- Practice expense (office) RVU8.41 · 46%
- Malpractice RVU1.75 · 10%
56
Medicare services in 2024 · #5280 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.
27332 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Virginia, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
Both address meniscectomy involving one meniscus, but 29881 is for an arthroscopic approach and 27332 for an open approach.
No office rate
29880 is an arthroscopic procedure involving both menisci; 27332 is open removal involving one meniscus.
Compare 27332 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.
2 of 2 payment localities
Dc + Md/Va Suburbs →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$686.40
Virginia →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$592.95
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27332 billing questions
When should 27333 be reported instead?
Use 27333 when the open procedure removes both the medial and lateral menisci. Use 27332 for removal involving one meniscus.
How does 27332 differ from arthroscopic meniscectomy?
27332 describes an open arthrotomy approach. When the surgeon performs the meniscectomy arthroscopically, consider the applicable arthroscopy code, such as 29881 for one meniscus.
What documentation supports 27332?
The operative report should support an open approach and removal of meniscal cartilage, and identify whether the medial or lateral meniscus was treated.
Does the 90-day global include related follow-up?
Yes. The day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included in the global period.
How are bilateral procedures and other same-session procedures handled?
Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. For multiple procedures in one session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment may be available. Co-surgeons are paid only with supporting documentation; team surgery is 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.
2,84027329,,Resect thigh/knee tum < 5 cm,A,,15.33,10.11,NA,10.11,,3.48,28.92,28.92,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84127330,,Biopsy knee joint lining,A,,4.98,6.31,NA,6.31,,1.07,12.36,12.36,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,1,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84227331,,Explore/treat knee joint,A,,5.87,6.66,NA,6.66,,1.23,13.76,13.76,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84327332,,Removal of knee cartilage,A,,8.25,8.41,NA,8.41,,1.75,18.41,18.41,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84427333,,Removal of knee cartilage,A,,7.36,7.98,NA,7.98,,1.56,16.90,16.90,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84527334,,Remove knee joint lining,A,,8.96,8.60,NA,8.60,,1.90,19.46,19.46,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
2,84627335,,Remove knee joint lining,A,,10.29,9.05,NA,9.05,,2.19,21.53,21.53,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00