G0252 Pet imaging initial dx

What G0252 is

Pet imaging, full and partial-ring pet scanners only, for initial diagnosis of breast cancer and/or surgical planning for breast cancer (e.g., initial staging of axillary lymph nodes)

HCPCS Level II long description, CMS October 2026 file. See the G codes page for the full section.

Medicare payment for G0252 (CY2026)

This code has no Physician Fee Schedule rate: Non-covered by Medicare. It may be paid under a different fee schedule (clinical laboratory, DMEPOS, anesthesia) or not paid at all - check the relevant CMS schedule.

Medically Unlikely Edit (MUE)

Medicare caps G0252 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 G0252? These codes are bundled into it

G0252 is a Column 1 code in 3 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.

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.