All ASC CPT codes
ASC SPECIALTY HUB · Musculoskeletal 20000–29999

Orthopaedic Surgery in the ASC: CPT Codes and Coverage

Orthopaedic surgery covers operative treatment of bones, joints, ligaments, and tendons. In an ambulatory surgery center the focus is same-day procedures: knee and shoulder arthroscopy, soft-tissue and tendon repairs, fracture fixation, and a growing share of joint replacement that has moved from the hospital to outpatient settings.

Almost all of this work lives in the musculoskeletal CPT family, 20000 through 29999, with examples like arthroscopic meniscectomy (29881) and total knee arthroplasty (27447). We map 1634 ASC-relevant CPT codes to orthopaedic surgery. Whether Medicare pays a procedure in an ASC depends on the CMS addenda: codes on Addendum AA are on the ASC Covered Procedures List, while Addendum EE codes are excluded from ASC payment. Confirming a code's current status before scheduling is part of clean orthopaedic billing.

Orthopaedic Surgery codes(1–60 of 1,634)

Are orthopaedic procedures performed in an ASC?

Yes. Many orthopaedic procedures are well suited to the ambulatory setting because patients recover and go home the same day. Common examples include knee and shoulder arthroscopy, tendon and ligament repairs, fracture fixation, and hardware removal. Total joint replacement such as total knee arthroplasty (27447) has also increasingly moved to ASCs. Whether Medicare pays a specific procedure in an ASC depends on whether the code appears on the ASC Covered Procedures List under CMS Addendum AA.

What CPT codes does orthopaedic surgery use?

Orthopaedic surgery codes sit almost entirely in the musculoskeletal range, CPT 20000-29999. This family includes fracture and dislocation treatment, soft-tissue and tendon repair, joint replacement such as 27130 (total hip arthroplasty), and arthroscopy codes in the 29800s like 29881 and 29827. We map 1634 ASC-relevant orthopaedic codes in our dataset, so the specific codes used vary widely by subspecialty and the joint or region being treated.

How do I know if an orthopaedic CPT code is covered in an ASC?

Check the code against the current CMS addenda. A code on Addendum AA is on the ASC Covered Procedures List, which means Medicare pays it when the procedure is performed in an ASC. Addendum BB identifies covered ancillary services, while Addendum EE lists codes excluded from ASC payment. Coverage and the procedure list change over time, so confirm the current status before scheduling. DataLily's procedure library tracks CPT-specific prior-authorization and documentation requirements alongside this coverage status.

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