No office rate
29897 describes limited ankle-joint debridement. This code is for partial removal of diseased synovium, not general joint cleanup.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
29895 Ankle arthroscopy Medicare reimbursement rates in Virginia
Reports arthroscopic removal of a limited amount of inflamed ankle-joint synovium when synovial disease is treated surgically rather than incidental tissue cleanup. Compare 29895 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 29895 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
$420.96–$479.78
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 29895: Partial ankle synovectomy by arthroscopy
Reports arthroscopic removal of a limited amount of inflamed ankle-joint synovium when synovial disease is treated surgically rather than incidental tissue cleanup.
An orthopedic foot-and-ankle surgeon uses an arthroscope and instruments through small portals to remove a limited amount of inflamed or thickened synovial tissue from the ankle joint. This may be performed for symptomatic synovitis in a hospital outpatient department or ambulatory surgery center. The operative report should identify the treated ankle and describe the synovial tissue removed and the extent of the resection.
Select this service when partial synovial removal is the operative work, rather than loose-body extraction or joint debridement. Document the clinical indication and distinguish synovectomy from incidental synovial cleanup during another procedure. The code has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. For multiple procedures in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Bilateral reporting with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; co-surgeons require supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 29895
- 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 RVU6.95 · 54%
- Practice expense (office) RVU5.04 · 39%
- Malpractice RVU0.99 · 8%
367
Medicare services in 2024 · #3808 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.
29895 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Virginia, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
29898 is for extensive ankle debridement. Use this code when the documented primary work is partial synovectomy rather than extensive debridement.
No office rate
29894 is for arthroscopic removal of a loose body or foreign body. It does not describe excision of inflamed synovium.
Compare 29895 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
$479.78
Virginia →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$420.96
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29895 billing questions
How does partial synovectomy differ from major ankle synovectomy?
This code describes removal of a limited amount of ankle-joint synovium. The major synovectomy code is for more extensive work involving two or more compartments.
When should ankle debridement be coded instead?
Use an ankle debridement code when the documented work is removal of pathologic tissue or debris for joint cleanup, rather than partial excision of diseased synovium.
Can this be reported with loose-body removal?
A separately performed loose-body removal may be documented as distinct work, but do not separately report overlapping or incidental work. Check applicable coding edits for the code pair.
What documentation supports this code?
The operative report should establish ankle-joint synovitis, identify the side, and describe the location and limited extent of synovial tissue excision.
How is bilateral ankle surgery reported?
For bilateral procedures, report modifier 50; CMS pays the bilateral procedure at 150%.
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.
3,37229892,,Arthrs aid rpr od les/tib fx,A,,10.01,6.62,NA,6.62,,1.26,17.89,17.89,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37329893,,Endoscopic plantr fasciotomy,A,,6.16,13.20,,5.79,,0.56,19.92,12.51,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,1,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37429894,,Ankle arthroscopy/surgery,A,,7.17,5.85,NA,5.85,,1.20,14.22,14.22,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37529895,,Ankle arthroscopy/surgery,A,,6.95,5.04,NA,5.04,,0.99,12.98,12.98,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37629897,,Ankle arthroscopy/surgery,A,,7.14,5.62,NA,5.62,,1.16,13.92,13.92,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37729898,,Ankle arthroscopy/surgery,A,,8.28,6.14,NA,6.14,,1.26,15.68,15.68,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3,37829899,,Ankle arthroscopy/surgery,A,,15.02,9.86,NA,9.86,,2.70,27.58,27.58,0,090,0.10,0.69,0.21,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00