$63.98–$74.94
Use 51701 when the catheter is removed after drainage. Use 51702 when a temporary catheter is left in place.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
51701 Bladder catheterization Medicare reimbursement rates in Virginia
Reports temporary straight catheterization to drain the bladder, obtain urine, or assess residual urine when catheter-based measurement is performed. Compare 51701 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 51701 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
$44.28–$51.33
2 of 2 localities have a supported rate.
Facility setting
$21.30–$23.79
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.
Urology procedure
About 51701: Straight bladder catheterization
Reports temporary straight catheterization to drain the bladder, obtain urine, or assess residual urine when catheter-based measurement is performed.
A straight catheter is passed through the urethra into the bladder to drain urine and then removed. Common situations include obtaining a urine specimen when a clean-catch sample is not feasible and measuring postvoid residual urine by drainage. Urologists and other clinicians use this service in office, emergency, and facility settings.
Choose this code for temporary in-and-out catheterization, rather than placement of a catheter intended to remain in the bladder or a technically difficult insertion. Document the clinical reason, that the catheter was removed after drainage, and the specimen or urine-volume result when relevant. The service has a 0-day global period, so same-day preoperative and postoperative care is included. When multiple procedures occur in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and other procedures are subject to the standard 50% reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate for this single-bladder service. Assistant-at-surgery payment is restricted; co-surgeons and team surgery are not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 51701
- 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 RVU0.49 · 36%
- Practice expense (office) RVU0.80 · 59%
- Malpractice RVU0.07 · 5%
130.9K
Medicare services in 2024 · #487 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.
51701 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Virginia, from the same CMS release.
$150.74–$175.44
51703 represents complex catheter insertion; 51701 describes the in-and-out service without that complexity distinction.
$12.29–$14.91
51798 measures bladder volume noninvasively by ultrasound. This code involves passing a catheter into the bladder to drain urine.
Compare 51701 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
$51.33
Facility
$23.79
Virginia →
Office / nonfacility
$44.28
Facility
$21.30
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51701 billing questions
How does this differ from 51702?
This code describes a catheter that is removed after drainage. Use 51702 when a temporary indwelling catheter is placed to remain in the bladder.
When is 51703 more appropriate?
51703 is for a complex catheter insertion. Do not select it solely because the patient has urinary retention; the documentation must support the complexity of the insertion.
Can this code be used to measure postvoid residual?
Yes, when residual urine is assessed by catheter drainage. For a noninvasive ultrasound measurement of bladder volume, compare 51798.
Should modifier 50 be appended for a catheterization?
No. The bladder is a single organ for this service, and bilateral adjustment is not appropriate.
What should the record show?
Document the indication, temporary catheter placement and removal, and the urine specimen or drained volume when applicable. These details distinguish in-and-out catheterization from indwelling placement.
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.
6,04351605,,Preparation for bladder xray,A,,0.62,0.36,NA,0.36,,0.07,1.05,1.05,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04451610,,Injection for bladder x-ray,A,,1.02,2.70,,0.59,,0.12,3.84,1.73,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04551700,,Irrigation of bladder,A,,0.59,1.68,,0.12,,0.07,2.34,0.78,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04651701,,Insert bladder catheter,A,,0.49,0.80,,0.10,,0.07,1.36,0.66,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04751702,,Insert temp bladder cath,A,,0.49,1.40,,0.12,,0.07,1.96,0.68,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04851703,,Insert bladder cath complex,A,,1.43,3.00,,0.40,,0.19,4.62,2.02,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,04951705,,Change of bladder tube,A,,0.88,2.03,,0.41,,0.12,3.03,1.41,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00