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Medical RVU Calculator — Payment, Global Period, 8-Min Rule

Calculate Medicare RVU payment with the 2026 conversion factor, check global surgical period billing rules, and convert therapy minutes to units.

Estimated Medicare Payment
$65.13
GPCI-adjusted total RVUs: 1.950 × $33.40 conversion factor

The Medicare conversion factor is set annually by CMS rulemaking and statute — always verify the current-year rate at cms.gov before using this figure for real billing decisions.

Medicare Payment = [(Work RVU × Work GPCI) + (PE RVU × PE GPCI) + (MP RVU × MP GPCI)] × Conversion Factor. Global surgical periods (000/010/090-day) determine which E/M visits are bundled into a procedure's payment versus separately billable with modifier -24 or -25. The 8-minute rule converts total timed-service minutes into billable units: 8–22 min = 1 unit, 23–37 = 2, 38–52 = 3, 53–67 = 4, continuing in 15-minute increments — computed here as 1 + floor((minutes − 8) ÷ 15).
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Reference Values

Last verified:
Category Range What It Means Status
CY 2026 Conversion Factor — Standard (non-qualifying APM) $33.40 per RVU Applies to most Medicare Part B physician claims. 2026 is the first year CMS split the conversion factor into two separate statutory rates instead of one blended rate. Good
CY 2026 Conversion Factor — Qualifying APM Participant ★ $33.57 per RVU A slightly higher rate (+0.5% statutory incentive) for clinicians who qualify as Advanced Alternative Payment Model participants that year — most solo/small-group billers use the standard rate instead. ★ Best
Medicare Payment Formula ★ [(Work RVU × Work GPCI) + (PE RVU × PE GPCI) + (MP RVU × MP GPCI)] × Conversion Factor The three RVU components (physician work, practice expense, malpractice) are each locality-adjusted by their own Geographic Practice Cost Index before summing and multiplying by the conversion factor. ★ Best
000-Day Global Period Visit day only, no post-op window Used for minor procedures/endoscopies with no meaningful recovery period. E/M visits on other days are generally billable normally; only the day-of E/M tied directly to the procedure is bundled in. Good
010-Day Global Period Procedure day + 10 days post-op Minor procedure. Related E/M visits during the 10-day window are bundled into the procedure's payment and not separately billable unless modifier -24 (unrelated E/M by same physician during post-op period) or -25 (significant, separately identifiable E/M same day) applies. Okay
090-Day Global Period 1 day pre-op + procedure day + 90 days post-op Major surgery. Bundles the pre-op visit, the surgery itself, and related post-op care for 90 days. Unrelated E/M during the window still needs modifier -24 to be paid separately; a same-day unrelated E/M needs modifier -25. Poor
8-Minute Rule: 8–22 minutes 1 billable unit Minimum threshold — under 8 minutes of a single timed service is not billable at all under Medicare's rule. Good
8-Minute Rule: 23–37 minutes 2 billable units Good
8-Minute Rule: 38–52 minutes 3 billable units Good
8-Minute Rule: 53–67 minutes 4 billable units Good
8-Minute Rule: 68–82 minutes 5 billable units Pattern continues in 15-minute increments indefinitely: each additional full 15-minute block (roughly, 8+ minutes past the prior tier's midpoint) adds one more unit. Good

Source: CMS.gov CY 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule fact sheet (two-track conversion factor for qualifying APM participants vs. standard rate, first split under the Consolidated Appropriations Act statutory update); CMS.gov Global Surgery Data Collection page (000/010/090-day global period definitions and modifier -24/-25 billing rules); American Physical Therapy Association "Coding for Timed Codes (8-Minute Rule)" guidance (CMS's official unit-conversion table, 42 CFR billing guidance for timed CPT codes). The conversion factor is set annually by CMS rulemaking and statute — always verify the current-year rate directly at cms.gov before billing.

Worked Examples

Medicare Payment — Standard Office Visit (Standard CF)

Work RVU
1.00
PE RVU
0.85
MP RVU
0.10
GPCIs
1.00 / 1.00 / 1.00 (national average)
Conversion Factor
$33.40 (standard)
$65.13 payment

(1.00×1.00 + 0.85×1.00 + 0.10×1.00) × $33.40 = 1.95 × $33.40 = $65.13.

Medicare Payment — Major Surgery in a High-Cost Locality (APM CF)

Work RVU
5.00
PE RVU
3.00
MP RVU
0.50
GPCIs
1.05 (Work) / 1.02 (PE) / 0.98 (MP)
Conversion Factor
$33.57 (qualifying APM)
$295.42 payment

(5.00×1.05 + 3.00×1.02 + 0.50×0.98) × $33.57 = (5.25 + 3.06 + 0.49) × $33.57 = 8.80 × $33.57 = $295.42.

Global Period — 010-Day Minor Procedure

Procedure
Skin lesion removal
Global Period
010-day
Related E/M visits bundled for 10 days

The procedure day plus the following 10 days are bundled into one payment. A follow-up visit for the same issue on day 5 isn't separately billable unless it qualifies for modifier -24 (unrelated) — an E/M for an unrelated new complaint that same week could still be billed with modifier -24 attached.

Global Period — 090-Day Major Surgery

Procedure
Open abdominal surgery
Global Period
090-day
1 pre-op day + procedure + 90 post-op days bundled

The day before surgery, the surgery itself, and 90 days of related post-op care are all bundled into the single global payment. A same-day unrelated E/M (say, an unrelated cardiology complaint) would need modifier -25 to be paid separately from the surgical E/M.

8-Minute Rule — Combined Timed Therapy Session

Manual Therapy
15 minutes
Therapeutic Exercise
20 minutes
Ultrasound
10 minutes
Total Timed Minutes
45 minutes
3 billable units

45 total timed minutes falls in the 38–52 minute tier, which bills as 3 units under Medicare's 8-minute rule — units = 1 + floor((45−8)/15) = 1 + floor(2.47) = 1 + 2 = 3.

How to Use This Calculator

  1. 1

    Pick a tool

    Medicare Payment, Global Surgical Period, or 8-Minute Rule — each tab works independently.

  2. 2

    Medicare Payment: enter the CPT code's RVU components

    Work RVU, Practice Expense RVU, and Malpractice RVU (found in CMS's public RVU lookup per CPT code), plus each component's GPCI — defaulted to 1.0 as a national-average simplification, adjustable for your locality.

  3. 3

    Choose the conversion factor

    Standard ($33.40) applies to most billers; Qualifying APM Participant ($33.57) applies only if you're enrolled in a CMS-recognized Advanced Alternative Payment Model.

  4. 4

    Global Surgical Period: select 000, 010, or 090 days

    Reads out the post-op window length and which E/M billing restrictions (modifier -24 vs -25) apply during it.

  5. 5

    8-Minute Rule: enter total timed-service minutes

    Add up every timed CPT code's minutes for the visit, enter the total, and read the billable unit count instantly.

What Each Value Means

Work RVU (RVUs)
The portion of a CPT code's Relative Value Unit that reflects physician time, skill, and effort — the largest component of most procedure and E/M codes.
GPCI (Geographic Practice Cost Index) (index (≈1.0 national average))
A locality-specific multiplier CMS applies to each RVU component (work, practice expense, malpractice) to adjust for regional cost-of-living and liability-insurance differences. Defaults to 1.0 as a national-average simplification.
Conversion Factor (USD per RVU)
The dollar amount Medicare pays per total adjusted RVU, set annually by CMS through federal rulemaking and statute. Split into two rates starting CY 2026 (standard vs. qualifying APM participant).
Global Surgical Period (days)
The number of days of related follow-up care CMS bundles into a single procedure's payment, ranging from none (000-day) to 90 days (major surgery).
Billable Unit (8-Minute Rule) (units)
Medicare's conversion of total timed-service minutes into billable units for timed CPT codes, following a fixed minute-range table rather than a simple minutes-divided-by-15 calculation.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Medicare RVU payment formula?
Medicare payment = [(Work RVU × Work GPCI) + (Practice Expense RVU × PE GPCI) + (Malpractice RVU × MP GPCI)] × Conversion Factor. Each of the three RVU components — physician work, practice expense, and malpractice — gets its own Geographic Practice Cost Index (GPCI) adjustment for local cost-of-living and liability differences before the totals are summed and multiplied by the national conversion factor. You can find Work, PE, and MP RVU values for any CPT code in CMS's public RVU lookup file (the Physician Fee Schedule Look-Up Tool at cms.gov).
Why does the Medicare conversion factor change every year — and why are there two rates in 2026?
The conversion factor is set through annual federal rulemaking and statutory formulas (budget neutrality adjustments, the Medicare Economic Index, and Congress's own legislated updates), so it rarely stays flat year to year. 2026 is unusual: it's the first year CMS split the single blended conversion factor into two separate statutory rates — $33.57 for clinicians who qualify as Advanced Alternative Payment Model (APM) participants, and $33.40 for everyone else. Because this figure is revised annually (and sometimes mid-year by subsequent legislation), always verify the current rate directly at cms.gov before using it for real billing or compensation decisions — this calculator is a planning estimate, not a live feed of CMS's fee schedule.
What's the difference between a 000-day, 010-day, and 090-day global surgical period?
The global period defines how many days of related follow-up care are bundled into a single procedure payment instead of billed separately. A 000-day period (typical for minor procedures and endoscopies) has no post-op window at all — only the same-day procedure-related work is bundled. A 010-day period (minor procedures) bundles the procedure day plus 10 days after. A 090-day period (major surgery) bundles one day before surgery, the day of surgery, and 90 days after. During any bundled window, a related E/M visit generally isn't separately payable — an unrelated E/M needs modifier -24, and a same-day unrelated E/M needs modifier -25 to get paid on top of the global package.
How does Medicare's 8-minute rule work for therapy billing?
For timed CPT codes (like therapeutic exercise or manual therapy), Medicare converts total minutes of skilled, one-on-one timed service into billable units using a fixed table: 8–22 minutes = 1 unit, 23–37 minutes = 2 units, 38–52 minutes = 3 units, 53–67 minutes = 4 units, and the pattern continues in roughly 15-minute increments beyond that. Under 8 minutes of a single timed service isn't billable at all. When a session mixes multiple timed codes, add up all the timed minutes first, then look up the total in this table to get your total billable units for that visit.
Is this calculator a substitute for my practice's official billing software?
No. This tool estimates Medicare's published formulas for planning, education, and quick sanity-checks — it does not submit claims, apply payer-specific modifiers beyond the general -24/-25 rules described here, account for Medicare Advantage or commercial payer variations (which often use their own fee schedules), or reflect mid-year legislative changes to the conversion factor. For actual claims, compensation modeling, or compliance decisions, use your practice management system and confirm current rates against CMS's official Physician Fee Schedule Look-Up Tool and Global Surgery Data Collection page.