G0443 Brief alcohol misuse counsel

What G0443 is

Brief face-to-face behavioral counseling for alcohol misuse, 15 minutes

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

Medicare payment for G0443 (CY2026)

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 G0443 at 1 unit per date of service for practitioner claims (MAI 2 - date of service edit (absolute): units above the MUE never pay), rationale: CMS Policy. Units above the cap are denied unless the edit's adjudication rules allow an appeal with documentation.

Billed with G0443? These codes are bundled into it

G0443 is a Column 1 code in 80 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.

Showing 30 of 80 column 2 codes. Use the pair checker for any specific combination.

G0443 is bundled into these codes

G0443 appears as a Column 2 code in 221 active edits. Reported with one of these Column 1 codes on the same date of service, G0443 is the code that denies.

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.