Modifier TC: Technical Component Billing for Medicare
Modifier TC bills only the technical component of a test: equipment, staff and supplies. Who bills it, which codes accept it, and how Medicare reduces it.
Modifier TC is a HCPCS Level II modifier that bills only the technical component of a diagnostic test: the equipment, the technologist and the supplies used to perform it, without the physician's interpretation. The provider who owns the equipment bills TC, and the reading physician bills the same code with modifier 26.
Key takeaways
- TC works only on codes with a Medicare PC/TC indicator of 1.
- Independent diagnostic testing facilities, freestanding imaging centers and offices that send studies out to be read bill TC.
- Part B never pays TC for hospital patients. The hospital is paid for the technical side directly.
- The technical component has no physician work RVUs, only practice expense and malpractice.
- Some technical components are reduced when several are done in one session: 50% for later imaging in the same family, 25% for later cardiovascular tests, 20% for later ophthalmology tests.
Modifier TC · payment effect
With and without the modifier
93306 without TC · national office
$196.73
Echocardiogram (TTE)
93306-TC · Technical component
$129.26
Pays only the equipment, supplies and staff.
What modifier TC means
Because TC is a HCPCS Level II modifier, its official descriptor is CMS text. In part, it reads: "Technical component; under certain circumstances, a charge may be made for the technical component alone; under those circumstances the technical component charge is identified by adding modifier 'TC' to the usual procedure number." The descriptor adds that portable X-ray suppliers bill only the technical component.
In practice, TC splits a test into the part that needs a machine and staff from the part that needs a physician. The global code (no modifier) covers both. TC plus 26 equals the global service.
CMS payment indicators · 93306
Echocardiogram (TTE)
| Rule | CMS value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Global period | XXX | The global surgery concept doesn’t apply. |
| Multiple procedures | 6 | Diagnostic cardiovascular reduction applies to the technical component. |
| Bilateral (modifier 50) | 0 | The 150% bilateral adjustment doesn’t apply. |
| Assistant at surgery (80/81/82/AS) | 0 | Not paid without supporting documentation. |
| Co-surgeons (62) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Team surgery (66) | 0 | Not permitted. |
| Professional/technical | 1 | Diagnostic test with separate professional (26) and technical (TC) components. |
When to use modifier TC
- You perform the test, someone else reads it. An office runs an echocardiogram (93306) on its own machine and sends the images to an outside cardiologist. The office bills 93306-TC; the cardiologist bills 93306-26.
- Independent diagnostic testing facilities and imaging centers that perform studies read by radiologists who bill on their own.
- Portable X-ray suppliers, which bill only the technical component.
When not to use modifier TC
Also skip TC:
- When you perform and read the test. Bill the global code with no modifier.
- On codes with PC/TC indicator 0, 2, 3 or 4. Technical-only codes such as 93005 already exclude the interpretation and reject TC.
- On the same line as 26. Use one or the other, or neither.
How modifier TC affects payment
The technical component is priced from practice expense and malpractice RVUs only; physician work is zero. Three Medicare rules can reduce it further:
- Imaging in the same family, same session (multiple procedure indicator 4): highest-priced TC at 100%, each additional at 50%.
- Diagnostic cardiovascular tests (indicator 6): 25% reduction to the TC of the second and later procedures.
- Diagnostic ophthalmology tests (indicator 7): 20% reduction to the TC of the second and later procedures.
Imaging technical components are also capped at the hospital outpatient (OPPS) amount under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005; CMS publishes the capped amounts with each fee schedule release. X-rays taken on film carry modifier FX and a 20% technical component cut (Pub. 100-04, ch. 13, §20.2.5).
Medicare rate · 93306
Echocardiogram (TTE)
Swap in your local Medicare rate.
- Work RVUs
- 1.42
- Total RVUs
- 5.89
- Global days
- XXX
National rate · 2026
$196.73
Office setting, before claim adjustments.
See every locality for 93306 → · Billed by an NP, PA or therapist? →
Modifier TC vs 26 vs global
| Billing | Who bills it | RVUs paid |
|---|---|---|
| Code with TC | Owner of the equipment and staff | Practice expense and malpractice |
| Code with 26 | Interpreting physician | Work plus a small PE and MP share |
| Code with no modifier | One provider does both | All three |
| Hospital patient | Hospital bills the technical side; physician bills 26 | — |
FAQ
What is the TC modifier?
A HCPCS Level II modifier that bills only the technical component of a diagnostic service: the equipment, staff and supplies, without the physician's interpretation.
What does TC mean in medical billing?
Technical component. It's the part of a test that needs the machine and technologist. The other part is the professional component, billed with modifier 26.
What's the difference between modifier TC and 26?
TC pays the provider who performed the test; 26 pays the physician who interpreted it. Together they equal the global service billed without a modifier.
Which modifier goes first, TC or 59?
List the pricing modifier first. TC changes how the code is priced; 59 only tells the payer the service was separate. That's the usual convention; if a payer publishes its own modifier order, follow it.
Can an office bill TC if a hospital radiologist reads the study?
Yes, if the patient isn't a hospital inpatient or outpatient and the office owns the equipment and performed the test. The radiologist bills 26.
Keep reading
- Modifier 26, the professional half of the split.
- Modifier 59 and XU for bundled test pairs.
- Modifier 76 for a repeated study on the same day.
- Codes on this page: 93306 71046 93005 73721
Sources: CMS HCPCS Level II modifier file, modifier TC long descriptor; CMS National Physician Fee Schedule Relative Value File, CY 2026 (RVU26D), PC/TC and multiple procedure indicators and OPPS cap fields; Medicare Claims Processing Manual, Pub. 100-04, ch. 13, §20.2.1–20.2.5. Verified October 6, 2026.
