Global Period by CPT Code: Looking Up Global Surgery Days
The number of global days attached to a procedure is a property of the CPT code, published in the global column of the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. Once you know whether a code is 000, 010 or 090, the end date follows directly from the date of surgery.
Frequently searched codes and their global days
- 10060 and 10061 — incision and drainage of abscess: 010 global.
- 11042 — debridement of subcutaneous tissue: 000 global.
- 11730 — avulsion of nail plate: 000 global.
- 28003 — I&D of foot tendon sheath or bursa, multiple areas: 090 global.
- 28005 — incision of bone cortex of the foot for osteomyelitis: 090 global.
- 29130 — application of a static finger splint: 000 global.
- 46221 — hemorrhoidectomy by rubber band ligation: 010 global.
- 65855, 66761, 67145 and 68761 — common ophthalmic laser and punctal procedures: 010 global.
Where the official values live
CMS publishes the relative value file for the Physician Fee Schedule each year; column GLOB carries the global indicator. Medicare Administrative Contractors including Palmetto GBA, Noridian and NGS republish the same data in searchable lookup tools. Because indicators are reviewed annually, verify against the file for the year in which the service was performed rather than relying on a saved list.
Codes with no ordinary global period
- XXX — the global concept does not apply, typical of diagnostic tests and most E/M codes.
- YYY — the contractor determines the global period case by case for unlisted codes.
- ZZZ — add-on codes; the global follows the primary procedure they are reported with.
- MMM — maternity services, which use their own global maternity package rules.
Multiple procedures in one session
When several procedures with different globals are performed together, the longest global period governs the encounter. A 000 debridement performed alongside a 090 procedure is therefore absorbed into the 90-day window for related follow-up, which is a common source of denied post-operative claims.
Key takeaways — CPT Code Global Period Calculator
- Global days are a CPT-level attribute in the MPFS global column, not a physician choice.
- I&D codes 10060/10061 are 010; debridement 11042 and splint 29130 are 000.
- When globals differ across same-session procedures, the longest one controls.