Medicare/CMS - Transmittals · Effective Jul 1, 2026Medium impact
R13836CP: July 2026 Update of the Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System
Effective July 1, 2026, Medicare's ASC payment system adds HCPCS code C1609 for a motion-preserving vertebral device, C8014 for cystourethroscopy with ureteroscopy and lithotripsy using a suction enabled ureteral access sheath, and ten new drug, biological and radiopharmaceutical codes, and it revises the long descriptor for C9761. Payment indicators also change for several items, and CPT 0996T is revised to payment indicator E5, meaning no Medicare payment, retroactive to January 1, 2026 because its device has not received full FDA approval. Caldolor (J1741) receives temporary additional payment under Section 4135 of the CAA, 2023 effective March 11, 2026, with a payment limitation of $1,892.36.