Billing code 33548: Ventricular restorationMedicare rate & RVUs in Washington
Reports surgical reconstruction of a scarred or aneurysmal left ventricle to restore ventricular shape, commonly after myocardial infarction.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for 33548 in Washington.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
On this page 9 sections
What 33548 covers
A cardiac surgeon performs this operation to reshape a damaged left ventricle, commonly when scar tissue or an aneurysmal area after a myocardial infarction has altered ventricular geometry. The surgeon may exclude or resect the affected area and reconstruct the ventricle, often with a patch. It is generally performed in a hospital operating room as open-heart surgery, sometimes alongside coronary artery bypass grafting when coronary disease also requires treatment.
Report the service when the operative report supports ventricular reconstruction, not simply removal of an aneurysm or repair of another postinfarction defect. Documentation should identify the ventricular pathology and describe the restoration technique. The code has a 90-day global period, including the day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care. For procedures in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and others at 50%. Modifier 50 is not appropriate for this single-heart procedure. Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team-surgery payment is not permitted.
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.
Where 33548 pays more and less in Washington
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Rest Of Washington | Unavailable | $2,728.52 |
| Seattle (King Cnty) | Unavailable | $2,919.94 |
How the 33548 rate is calculated
Each of 33548’s three RVUs is multiplied by a geographic index (GPCI) for the payment locality, added up, and multiplied by the conversion factor. Drag the indexes or enter a ZIP to see what moves the rate.
How the rate is built · 33548
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
Work 52.79Practice expense 17.63Malpractice 12.68
All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for 33548
33548 has a 90-day global period: related visits in that window are included in the surgery payment.
CMS payment indicators · 33548
Ventricular restoration
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | 090 | Major surgery: the day before, the day of, and 90 days after are included. |
| Multiple procedures | 2 | Standard reduction: highest-valued procedure at 100%, others at 50%. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 2 | Paid. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 1 | Permitted with supporting documentation. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 0 | Physician service: no professional/technical split. |
| Split (54/55/56) | 0.09/0.84/0.07 | Share of the payment for pre-op, the procedure itself, and post-op care. |
Global surgery period · 33548
Ventricular restoration
90-day global period ends
Dec 30, 2026
Covers Sep 30, 2026 through Dec 30, 2026 (92 days, including the day before surgery).
Visit on Oct 31, 2026
Day 30 of the 90-day post-op period: related follow-up care is included in the surgical payment.
Pre-op dayGlobal period
What modifiers do to the payment
Modifier 51 · payment effect
With and without the modifier
33548 without 51 · national facility
$2,775.61
Ventricular restoration
33548-51 · Second procedure: 50%
$1,387.81
When this isn’t the highest-valued procedure in the session, Medicare pays 50% of its fee schedule amount (the highest is paid at 100%).
33548 compared with similar codes
Compare codes
33548 vs 33542 vs 33545 vs 33533: national Medicare rates
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
How to choose
- 33542Heart lesion removal
- Choose 33548 when the operation reconstructs the left ventricle to restore its shape. Code 33542 describes aneurysm excision rather than ventricular restoration.
- 33545Heart repair
- Code 33545 is for repair of a postinfarction ventricular septal defect. Code 33548 addresses reconstruction of the damaged ventricular chamber, not septal-defect repair.
- 33533Arterial CABG
- Code 33533 reports arterial coronary bypass grafting, not ventricular reconstruction. It may be reported separately when both procedures are performed and documented.
33548 billing questions
How is this different from code 33542?
Code 33548 describes reconstruction to restore left ventricular shape after damage. Code 33542 describes excision of a ventricular aneurysm without the defining restoration procedure.
Can this be reported with a CABG code?
Yes, when the surgeon also performs coronary bypass grafting during the same session and the operative documentation supports both services. The standard multiple-procedure reduction applies to procedures performed in the same session.
How many units should be reported?
Report the ventricular restoration service once for the operation; do not use modifier 50 to represent treatment of both sides.
What documentation supports reporting this code?
The operative report should describe the left ventricular damage and the steps used to reconstruct or reshape the ventricle, such as exclusion or resection of scarred tissue and reconstruction.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery payment may be made. Co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation; team-surgery payment 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 indexes and the conversion factor. Services without a published rate are labeled, never given a made-up amount. Amounts are Medicare allowed amounts before claim adjustments: not a patient’s bill or a commercial rate.
CMS RVU26D · effective Oct 1, 2026 through the day before Jan 1, 2027
Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
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