Add-on for placing morselized allograft bone or bone-promoting material during spine surgery, reported once per operation.
- Medicare
- $0.00
- Work RVU
- 0
- Global, days
- Region
- Spine
Documentation requirements
What must appear in the operative or office note to support the claim.
Source · Editorial brief grounded in 3 cited references ↓
- Type of graft (morselized allograft or osteopromotive material)
- Product name and amount used
- Spinal procedure and levels it was used with
- Placement location in the operative field
- Any separate autograft harvest documented on its own
Applicable modifiers
Modifiers commonly billed with this code.
Source · AMA CPT modifier descriptors · CMS NCCI Policy Manual
What this code covers
Source · Editorial summary grounded in 3 cited references ↓
20930 is reported when morselized allograft bone or an osteopromotive material such as demineralized bone matrix is placed during spine surgery. It is an add-on billed with a spinal fusion or related spine code, and it is only for spine cases.
Spine surgeons, orthopedic or neurosurgical, use this in nearly every fusion that uses allograft or bone graft substitutes. It is reported once per operative session, not per level and not per type of material. Autograft has its own codes: 20936 for local bone taken from the same incision, 20937 and 20938 for bone harvested through a separate incision.
Medicare lists 20930 as bundled (status B), so it is not paid separately by Medicare, but many commercial payers still pay it. Bill it to keep the claim accurate and to capture commercial payment. Common errors are using it for non-spine bone grafting (it is spine only), billing more than one unit, and billing it without a spine primary procedure on the same claim. Structural allograft is a different code, 20931.
RVU & reimbursement
Component RVUs and Medicare national rate. Actual payment varies by GPCI locality.
Source · CMS Physician Fee Schedule, RVU26A · January 2026
| Work RVU | 0 |
| Practice expense RVU | 0 |
| Malpractice RVU | 0 |
| Total RVU | 0 |
| Medicare national rate | $0.00 |
| Global period | days |
Payment by site of service
Medicare pays different rates by setting. HOPD typically pays substantially more than ASC for the same procedure.
Source · CMS OPPS Addendum B·ASC HCPCS payment rates·2026
| Setting | Medicare rate (national) |
|---|---|
Office (PFS non-facility) Procedure performed in physician's office | $0.00 |
Common denial reasons
The recurring reasons claims for CPT 20930 get rejected.
Source · Editorial brief grounded in CMS NCCI edits, AAOS coding appeals, and cited references ↓
- Medicare does not pay separately because it is bundled
- Billed for non-spine bone graft
- More than one unit billed
- No spine primary procedure on the claim
- Structural allograft coded as 20930 instead of 20931
Frequently asked questions
Source · Generated from the editorial pipeline, verified against 3 cited references ↓
01Does Medicare pay 20930?
02Is 20930 billed per level?
03Can 20930 be used for a non-spine bone graft?
04What is the difference between 20930 and 20931?
Sources & references
Editorial content was developed using the following public sources.
Mira Scribe
Mira Scribe captures the graft material and where it was placed in the op note, so 20930 is coded and supported for payers that pay it.
See how Mira captures CPT 20930 documentation