No office rate
35221 describes direct repair of an intra-abdominal vessel without a graft. Choose 35281 when the operative repair uses graft material other than a vein.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
35281 Vessel repair Medicare reimbursement rates in Washington
Open reconstruction of an intra-abdominal blood vessel using a graft other than a vein, reported when the operative repair uses graft material. Compare 35281 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Washington.
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 35281 in Washington?
Washington 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
$1452.40–$1547.34
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 35281: Intra-abdominal vessel graft repair
Open reconstruction of an intra-abdominal blood vessel using a graft other than a vein, reported when the operative repair uses graft material.
A surgeon reconstructs an intra-abdominal blood vessel using graft material other than a vein. The repair may involve a major vessel such as the aorta or an abdominal branch vessel. Vascular surgeons commonly perform this work in an operating room during planned reconstruction or urgent treatment of vessel injury. The operative report should identify the vessel and its intra-abdominal location, describe the graft used, and explain the reconstruction performed.
Report this code when the documented repair uses a nonvenous graft; a direct repair or a repair using a vein graft is represented by a different code. CMS assigns a 90-day global period, including 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 others are reduced to 50%. A bilateral procedure reported with modifier 50 is paid at 150%. Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid; co-surgeon payment requires supporting documentation, and team surgery is not permitted.
CMS billing rules for 35281
- 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 RVU29.31 · 66%
- Practice expense (office) RVU7.70 · 17%
- Malpractice RVU7.47 · 17%
170
Medicare services in 2024 · #4475 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.
35281 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Washington, from the same CMS release.
No office rate
Both codes concern intra-abdominal vessel repair with a graft; 35251 specifies a vein graft, while 35281 is for graft material other than a vein.
No office rate
Both involve nonvenous graft repair, but 35276 is for an intrathoracic vessel without bypass. 35281 is for an intra-abdominal vessel.
Compare 35281 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
Rest Of Washington →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$1452.40
Seattle (King Cnty) →
Office / nonfacility
Unavailable
Facility
$1547.34
Need rates for a whole code list?
Fee-sheet and API access are in early access. Tell us which codes and locations your team needs.
35281 billing questions
How is 35281 different from 35251?
Both describe intra-abdominal vessel reconstruction using a graft, but 35281 is for graft material other than a vein. Use 35251 when the repair uses a vein graft.
When would 35221 be more appropriate?
Use 35221 for direct intra-abdominal vessel repair without a graft. The operative report must support use of graft material for 35281.
What operative details support 35281?
Document the vessel and its intra-abdominal location, the graft material, and the reconstructive work performed. These details distinguish this service from direct repair and vein-graft repair.
How does the 90-day global period affect postoperative billing?
The day-before preoperative visit and 90 days of related postoperative care are included in the global period.
How are multiple procedures and bilateral reporting handled?
For multiple procedures in the same session, the highest-valued procedure is paid in full and the others at 50%. A bilateral procedure reported with modifier 50 is paid at 150%.
Can an assistant or co-surgeon be reported?
Assistant-at-surgery services may be paid. Co-surgeon payment requires 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.
4,30735266,,Rpr blvsl grf oth/th vn uxtr,A,,15.43,4.24,NA,4.24,,3.92,23.59,23.59,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,30835271,,Rpr blvs gr ot/th vn ntrth w,A,,23.97,9.89,NA,9.89,,5.73,39.59,39.59,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,30935276,,Rpr blvs gr ot/t vn ntrth wo,A,,25.18,10.54,NA,10.54,,6.03,41.75,41.75,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,31035281,,Rpr blvsl gr ot/th vn ntr-ab,A,,29.31,7.70,NA,7.70,,7.47,44.48,44.48,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,31135286,,Rpr blvsl grf oth/th vn lxtr,A,,16.76,4.18,NA,4.18,,4.26,25.20,25.20,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,31235301,,Rechanneling of artery,A,,20.63,4.72,NA,4.72,,5.36,30.71,30.71,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
4,31335302,,Rechanneling of artery,A,,20.82,4.19,NA,4.19,,5.30,30.31,30.31,0,090,0.09,0.84,0.07,2,1,2,1,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00