97022 Whirlpool therapy
What 97022 is
CMS fee schedule short descriptor: Whirlpool therapy.
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 97022 (CY2026)
| Work RVU | Practice expense RVU | Malpractice RVU | Total | Medicare rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-facility (office) | 0.17 | 0.29 | 0.01 | 0.47 | $15.70 |
| Facility (hospital, ASC) | 0.17 | 0.29 | 0.01 | 0.47 | $15.70 |
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 97022 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: Clinical: Data. Units above the cap are denied unless the edit's adjudication rules allow an appeal with documentation.
Billed with 97022? These codes are bundled into it
97022 is a Column 1 code in 57 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
0213T | Njx paravert w/us cer/thor | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
0216T | Njx paravert w/us lumb/sac | 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 |
62320 | Njx interlaminar crv/thrc | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62321 | Njx interlaminar crv/thrc | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62322 | Njx interlaminar lmbr/sac | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62323 | Njx interlaminar lmbr/sac | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62324 | Njx interlaminar crv/thrc | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62325 | Njx interlaminar crv/thrc | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62326 | Njx interlaminar lmbr/sac | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
62327 | Njx interlaminar lmbr/sac | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64400 | Njx aa&/strd trigeminal nrv | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64405 | Njx aa&/strd gr ocpl nrv | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64408 | Njx aa&/strd vagus nrv | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64415 | Njx aa&/strd brch plxs img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64416 | Njx aa&/strd brch pl nfs img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64417 | Njx aa&/strd ax nerve img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64418 | Njx aa&/strd sprscap nrv | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64420 | Njx aa&/strd ntrcost nrv 1 | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64421 | Njx aa&/strd ntrcost nrv ea | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64425 | Njx aa&/strd ii ih nerves | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64430 | Njx aa&/strd pudendal nerve | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64435 | Njx aa&/strd paracrv nrv | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64445 | Njx aa&/strd sciatic nrv img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64446 | Njx aa&/strd sc nrv nfs img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64447 | Njx aa&/strd femoral nrv img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64448 | Njx aa&/strd fem nrv nfs img | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64449 | Njx aa&/strd lmbr plex nfs | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
64450 | Njx aa&/strd other pn/branch | 1 - modifier may bypass | Check pair |
Showing 30 of 57 column 2 codes. Use the pair checker for any specific combination.
97022 is bundled into these codes
97022 appears as a Column 2 code in 22 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, 97022 is the code that denies.
| Column 1 code | Short description | Modifier indicator | |
|---|---|---|---|
0906T | Coms ther 1st appl<=50 sq cm | 1 | Check pair |
11042 | Dbrdmt subq tis 1st 20sqcm/< | 1 | Check pair |
11055 | Paring/cutg b9 hyprker les 1 | 1 | Check pair |
11056 | Parng/cutg b9 hyprkr les 2-4 | 1 | Check pair |
11057 | Parng/cutg b9 hyprkr les >4 | 1 | Check pair |
11719 | Trim nail(s) any number | 1 | Check pair |
11720 | Debride nail 1-5 | 1 | Check pair |
11721 | Debride nail 6 or more | 1 | Check pair |
16000 | Initial treatment of burn(s) | 1 | Check pair |
16020 | Dress/debrid p-thick burn s | 1 | Check pair |
16025 | Dress/debrid p-thick burn m | 1 | Check pair |
16030 | Dress/debrid p-thick burn l | 1 | Check pair |
97018 | Paraffin bath therapy | 1 | Check pair |
97026 | Infrared therapy | 1 | Check pair |
97028 | Ultraviolet therapy | 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.