70491 Ct soft tissue neck w/dye
What 70491 is
CMS fee schedule short descriptor: Ct soft tissue neck w/dye.
Full CPT long descriptions are licensed by the American Medical Association and are not published on this site; the short descriptor above is the one CMS prints in its own fee schedule file. See About CPT.
Medicare payment for 70491 (CY2026)
| Work RVU | Practice expense RVU | Malpractice RVU | Total | Medicare rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-facility (office) | 1.35 | 4.05 | 0.09 | 5.49 | $183.37 |
| Facility (hospital, ASC) | 1.35 | 4.05 | 0.09 | 5.49 | $183.37 |
National rates: total RVUs x the CY2026 conversion factor of 33.4009 (non-QP), before geographic adjustment. Actual Medicare payment is 80% of the rate shown after the deductible; the patient or secondary payer owes the 20% coinsurance.
Status: Active - payable under the Physician Fee Schedule. Global period: Global concept does not apply.
Medically Unlikely Edit (MUE)
Medicare caps 70491 at 1 unit per date of service for practitioner claims (MAI 3 - date of service edit (clinical): units above the MUE may pay with documentation on appeal), rationale: Anatomic Consideration. Units above the cap are denied unless the edit's adjudication rules allow an appeal with documentation.
Billed with 70491? These codes are bundled into it
70491 is a Column 1 code in 28 active NCCI PTP edits. When one of these Column 2 codes is reported on the same date of service, it is denied as bundled - unless the edit's modifier indicator is 1 and documentation supports a distinct service with an NCCI-associated modifier.
| Column 2 code | Short description | Modifier indicator | |
|---|---|---|---|
01922 | Anes n-invas img/radj ther | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
0708T | Id ca immntx prep & 1st njx | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
0709T | Id ca immntx each addl njx | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36000 | Place needle in vein | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36005 | Injection ext venography | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36011 | Place catheter in vein | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36406 | Vnpnxr<3yrs phy/qhp other vn | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36410 | Vnpnxr 3yr/> phy/qhp dx/ther | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
36591 | Draw blood off venous device | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
36592 | Collect blood from picc | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
70490 | Ct soft tissue neck w/o dye | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
76000 | Fluoroscopy <1 hr phys/qhp | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
76380 | Cat scan follow-up study | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
76942 | Echo guide for biopsy | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
76998 | Us guide intraop | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
77001 | Fluoroguide for vein device | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
77002 | Needle localization by xray | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
78072 | Parathyrd planar w/spect&ct | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96360 | Hydration iv infusion init | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96365 | Ther/proph/diag iv inf init | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96372 | Ther/proph/diag inj sc/im | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96374 | Ther/proph/diag inj iv push | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96375 | Tx/pro/dx inj new drug addon | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96376 | Tx/pro/dx inj same drug adon | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96377 | Applicaton on-body injector | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
96523 | Irrig drug delivery device | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
J1642 | Inj heparin sodium per 10 u | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
J1644 | Inj heparin sodium per 1000u | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
70491 is bundled into these codes
70491 appears as a Column 2 code in 3 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, 70491 is the code that denies.
| Column 1 code | Short description | Modifier indicator | |
|---|---|---|---|
0721T | Quan ct tiss charac w/o ct | 1 | Check pair |
70498 | Ct angiography neck | 1 | Check pair |
77301 | Radiotherapy dose plan imrt | 1 | Check pair |
Data: CMS CY2026 Physician Fee Schedule RVU file (October release, RVU26D) and Medicare NCCI PTP practitioner edits v32.3 (2026 Q4). Verify against the official files before billing or contracting decisions.