Common surgery & pain management

29881 - RVUs & Medicare payment (2026)

Knee arthroscopy with meniscectomy.

Component	Non-facility	Facility
Work RVU	6.85	6.85
Practice expense RVU	7.19	7.19
Malpractice RVU	1.40	1.40
Total RVUs	15.44	15.44
National payment (CF $33.4009)	$515.71	$515.71
Qualifying APM payment (CF $33.5675)	$518.28	$518.28

How 29881 payment varies by locality

Medicare adjusts payment with geographic practice cost indices, so the same code pays differently across the 109 fee schedule localities. In 2026, non-facility payment for 29881 ranges from $459.17 in Arkansas (AR) to $625.33 in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (CA); calculate 29881 for your locality.

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (CA) $625.33 Alaska (AK) $624.72 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (CA) $618.83 NYC Suburbs/Long Island (NY) $615.82 San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (CA) $610.61 San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley (CA) $609.02 Miami (FL) $597.05 Manhattan (NY) $596.66 National average $515.71 … 97 more localities between … Nebraska (NE) $468.13 Iowa (IA) $467.10 Alabama (AL) $465.40 Arkansas (AR) $459.17

Non-facility payment for 29881 in the 2026 fee schedule ($33.4009 conversion factor), before sequestration. Gray bar = national average.

Global period: 090

90-day global period: routine pre- and post-operative care within 90 days is included in the payment.

Related codes - common surgery & pain management

27447 · total knee arthroplasty (knee replacement)
27130 · total hip arthroplasty (hip replacement)
47562 · laparoscopic cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal)
49505 · open repair of inguinal hernia, initial
19120 · excision of breast lesion
63030 · lumbar discectomy, single level
62323 · lumbar/caudal epidural injection with imaging guidance
64483 · transforaminal epidural injection, lumbar/sacral, first level
64493 · facet joint injection, lumbar/sacral, first level
59400 · vaginal delivery with antepartum and postpartum care

Frequently asked questions

How much does Medicare pay for 29881 in 2026?

The national non-facility payment is $515.71 and the facility payment is $515.71, using the standard $33.4009 conversion factor. Actual amounts vary by Medicare locality; use the RVU calculator for your area.

What is the work RVU for 29881?

The 2026 work RVU for 29881 is 6.85. Total RVUs are 15.44 in the non-facility setting and 15.44 in the facility setting.

Why are the facility and non-facility amounts different?

Only the practice expense component changes by setting. In an office (non-facility) the practice bears the overhead, so the PE RVU is higher; in a hospital or ASC the facility bills its own overhead separately.

Source: CMS Physician Fee Schedule relative value file (rvu26c.zip, retrieved 2026-07-11). Service description is an original plain-English summary, not CPT descriptor text. CPT® is a registered trademark of the American Medical Association. Amounts are estimates before sequestration and claim-level adjustments.