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88387 Macroscopic xm dsj&prep tiss

What 88387 is

CMS fee schedule short descriptor: Macroscopic xm dsj&prep tiss.

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 88387 (CY2026)

Work RVUPractice expense RVUMalpractice RVUTotalMedicare rate
Non-facility (office)0.600.360.020.98$32.73
Facility (hospital, ASC)0.600.360.020.98$32.73

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.

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Medically Unlikely Edit (MUE)

Medicare caps 88387 at 2 units 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: Clinical: Data. Units above the cap are denied unless the edit's adjudication rules allow an appeal with documentation.

Billed with 88387? These codes are bundled into it

88387 is a Column 1 code in 2 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 codeShort descriptionModifier indicator
88300Surgical path gross1 - modifier may bypassCheck pair
96523Irrig drug delivery device0 - no modifier bypassCheck pair

88387 is bundled into these codes

88387 appears as a Column 2 code in 111 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, 88387 is the code that denies.

Column 1 codeShort descriptionModifier indicator
0018M1Check pair
0086U1Check pair
0140U1Check pair
0141U1Check pair
0142U1Check pair
0321U1Check pair
81560Trnsplj pd lvr&bwl cd154+cll1Check pair
87003Small animal inoculation1Check pair
87015Specimen infect agnt concntj1Check pair
87040Blood culture for bacteria1Check pair
87045Feces culture aerobic bact1Check pair
87046Stool cultr aerobic bact ea1Check pair
87070Culture othr specimn aerobic1Check pair
87071Culture aerobic quant other1Check pair
87073Culture bacteria anaerobic1Check 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.