99174 Ocular instrumnt screen bil
What 99174 is
CMS fee schedule short descriptor: Ocular instrumnt screen bil.
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 99174 (CY2026)
| Work RVU | Practice expense RVU | Malpractice RVU | Total | Medicare rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-facility (office) | 0.00 | 0.19 | 0.01 | 0.20 | $6.68 |
| Facility (hospital, ASC) | 0.00 | 0.19 | 0.01 | 0.20 | $6.68 |
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: Non-covered by Medicare. Global period: Global concept does not apply.
Medically Unlikely Edit (MUE)
Medicare caps 99174 at 0 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: CMS Policy. Units above the cap are denied unless the edit's adjudication rules allow an appeal with documentation.
Billed with 99174? These codes are bundled into it
99174 is a Column 1 code in 7 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
0469T | Rta polarize scan oc scr bi | 0 - no modifier 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 |
92015 | Determine refractive state | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
96523 | Irrig drug delivery device | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
99172 | Ocular function screen | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
99173 | Visual acuity screen | 0 - no modifier bypass | Check pair |
99174 is bundled into these codes
99174 appears as a Column 2 code in 157 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, 99174 is the code that denies.
| Column 1 code | Short description | Modifier indicator | |
|---|---|---|---|
0591T | Hlth&wb coaching indiv 1st | 1 | Check pair |
0592T | Hlth&wb coaching indiv f-up | 1 | Check pair |
0593T | Hlth&wb coaching group | 1 | Check pair |
0734T | Rem r-t mtn nrehab tx mgmt | 1 | Check pair |
92002 | Intrm oph exam new patient | 0 | Check pair |
92004 | Compre oph exam new pt 1/> | 0 | Check pair |
92012 | Intrm oph exam est patient | 0 | Check pair |
92014 | Compre oph exam est pt 1/> | 0 | Check pair |
98000 | Synch audio-video new sf 15 | 1 | Check pair |
98001 | Synch audio-video new low 30 | 1 | Check pair |
98002 | Synch audio-video new mod 45 | 1 | Check pair |
98003 | Synch audio-video new hi 60 | 1 | Check pair |
98004 | Synch audio-video est sf 10 | 1 | Check pair |
98005 | Synch audio-video est low 20 | 1 | Check pair |
98006 | Synch audio-video est mod 30 | 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.