No office rate
Choose 60605 when carotid artery tissue is excised with the tumor. Choose 60600 when the tumor is removed without arterial excision.
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CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
60605 Carotid tumor excision Medicare reimbursement rates in Virginia
Reports removal of a carotid body tumor that requires excision of carotid artery tissue, typically during open surgery at the carotid bifurcation. Compare 60605 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 60605 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
$1418.49–$1620.68
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.
Vascular surgery
About 60605: Carotid body tumor excision with artery removal
Reports removal of a carotid body tumor that requires excision of carotid artery tissue, typically during open surgery at the carotid bifurcation.
This operation removes a carotid body paraganglioma at the carotid artery bifurcation and includes excision of carotid artery tissue when needed to remove the lesion. It is generally performed in an operating room by a vascular surgeon or head and neck surgeon, often with vascular reconstruction when the resection requires it. The carotid body lies beside the internal and external carotid arteries, so the operative report should clarify the tumor’s relationship to the vessels and what arterial tissue was removed.
Report 60605 when the documented operation includes carotid artery excision with the tumor removal; use 60600 when the tumor is excised without carotid artery excision. The 90-day global period includes the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. 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% multiple-procedure reduction. Modifier 50 is inappropriate. An assistant at surgery may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 60605
- 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 adjustment does not apply; the descriptor or anatomy makes modifier 50 inappropriate.
- 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 RVU31.16 · 69%
- Practice expense (office) RVU5.78 · 13%
- Malpractice RVU7.97 · 18%
17
Medicare services in 2024 · #6015 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.
60605 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Virginia, from the same CMS release.
60699
No office rateUnlisted px endocrine system
Use 60699 only when the actual endocrine-system procedure is not represented by a listed code; 60605 specifically describes carotid body tumor removal with arterial excision.
No office rate
35301 describes carotid endarterectomy for occlusive disease, not excision of a carotid body tumor.
Compare 60605 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
$1620.68
Virginia →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$1418.49
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60605 billing questions
How does 60605 differ from 60600?
60605 is for carotid body tumor removal that includes excision of carotid artery tissue. Use 60600 when the tumor is excised without arterial excision.
What operative documentation supports 60605?
The operative report should identify the carotid body tumor and describe excision of carotid artery tissue as part of removing it. A statement that the tumor was close to or adherent to the artery alone does not establish arterial excision.
Can modifier 50 be reported for bilateral tumors?
No. The CMS bilateral adjustment does not apply to this code, and modifier 50 is inappropriate.
How does the 90-day global period affect postoperative visits?
The day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included in the global period.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team surgery is not permitted.
What happens when another procedure is performed in the same session?
The highest-valued procedure is paid in full, and other procedures are subject to the standard multiple-procedure reduction.
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.
6,72160540,,Explore adrenal gland,A,,17.57,8.72,NA,8.72,,3.98,30.27,30.27,0,090,0.09,0.82,0.09,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72260545,,Explore adrenal gland,A,,20.41,9.87,NA,9.87,,4.88,35.16,35.16,0,090,0.09,0.82,0.09,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72360600,,Remove carotid body lesion,A,,24.46,6.59,NA,6.59,,5.60,36.65,36.65,0,090,0.09,0.82,0.09,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72460605,,Remove carotid body lesion,A,,31.16,5.78,NA,5.78,,7.97,44.91,44.91,0,090,0.09,0.82,0.09,2,0,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72560650,,Laparoscopy adrenalectomy,A,,20.21,8.24,NA,8.24,,4.60,33.05,33.05,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72660659,,Unlisted laps px endoc sys,C,,0.00,0.00,,0.00,,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,YYY,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,1,2,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
6,72760660,,Abltj 1/+thyr ndul 1lobe prq,A,,5.61,70.39,,1.78,,0.95,76.95,8.34,0,000,0.00,0.00,0.00,2,0,1,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00