72158 Mri lumbar spine w/o & w/dye
What 72158 is
CMS fee schedule short descriptor: Mri lumbar spine w/o & 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 72158 (CY2026)
| Work RVU | Practice expense RVU | Malpractice RVU | Total | Medicare rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-facility (office) | 2.23 | 7.14 | 0.16 | 9.53 | $318.31 |
| Facility (hospital, ASC) | 2.23 | 7.14 | 0.16 | 9.53 | $318.31 |
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 72158 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 72158? These codes are bundled into it
72158 is a Column 1 code in 31 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 |
0609T | Mrs disc pain acquisj data | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
0610T | Mrs disc pain transmis data | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
0611T | Mrs disc pain alg alys data | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
0612T | Mrs discogenic pain i&r | 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 |
72148 | Mri lumbar spine w/o dye | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
72149 | Mri lumbar spine w/dye | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
76000 | Fluoroscopy <1 hr phys/qhp | 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 |
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 |
Showing 30 of 31 column 2 codes. Use the pair checker for any specific combination.
72158 is bundled into these codes
72158 appears as a Column 2 code in 5 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, 72158 is the code that denies.
| Column 1 code | Short description | Modifier indicator | |
|---|---|---|---|
0648T | Quan mr tis wo mri 1orgn | 1 | Check pair |
72159 | Mr angio spine w/o&w/dye | 1 | Check pair |
C8931 | 1 | Check pair | |
C8932 | 1 | Check pair | |
C8933 | 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.