All ten RTM codes for 2026
Rates are the 2026 national Medicare amounts for outpatient private practice (non-facility), before your locality adjustment and before the patient's 20% coinsurance. The codes physical therapists typically report are marked with a green edge.
| Code | What it pays for | Threshold | 2026 Medicare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup, once per episode of care | |||
98975 | Initial setup and patient education on the device | 2 or more days of data in a 30-day period | $21.71 |
| Device supply, per 30-day period | |||
989852026 | Musculoskeletal monitoring | 2 to 15 days of data | $51.44 |
98977 | Musculoskeletal monitoring | 16 to 30 days of data | $51.44 |
989842026 | Respiratory monitoring | 2 to 15 days of data | $52.11 |
98976 | Respiratory monitoring | 16 to 30 days of data | $52.11 |
989862026 | Cognitive behavioral therapy monitoring | 2 to 15 days of data | Priced by the MAC |
98978 | Cognitive behavioral therapy monitoring | 16 to 30 days of data | Priced by the MAC |
| Treatment management, per calendar month, with a live interaction | |||
989792026 | Management time, first 10 minutes | 10 to 19 minutes | $26.39 |
98980 | Management time, first 20 minutes | 20 minutes or more | $54.11 |
98981 | Each additional 20 minutesOn top of 98980. More than one unit allowed. | Each full extra 20 minutes | $41.42 |
Rate = total non-facility RVUs x the 2026 conversion factor of $33.4009, from CMS's October 2026 relative value file (RVU26D, non-QP). 98978 and 98986 carry status C, meaning each Medicare Administrative Contractor prices them. APTA notes the cognitive behavioral therapy codes "are not traditionally reported by physical therapists." For your own locality, use the RTM calculator.
The two windows
Most RTM billing mistakes come from mixing up two different clocks.
- Device supply (98985, 98977) counts days of data in a 30-day period. The number of monitoring days is the number of days data was transmitted. A 30-day period is not a calendar month.
- Treatment management (98979, 98980, 98981) counts minutes in a calendar month. CMS says the day thresholds do not apply to these codes. Each month needs at least one real-time interactive communication with the patient or caregiver.
So one patient has two billing calendars that rarely line up. If a patient's 30-day periods run from the 15th, their device codes close mid-month while their management time resets on the first of every month. If the patient's monitoring spans two calendar months, APTA's advisory says each month needs its own 20 minutes to bill 98980 in that month.
What changed in 2026
- Four new codes. The CY2026 Physician Fee Schedule final rule added 98984, 98985 and 98986 for 2 to 15 days of data, and 98979 for 10 to 19 minutes of management.
- Short months now pay. Before 2026 a patient with fewer than 16 days of data in a period earned no device payment. 98985 carries the same 1.54 RVUs as 98977, so in 2026 a patient who logs on 2 days and one who logs on 25 days earn the same device payment.
- 98975 moved from day 17 to day 3. The descriptor now reads "2 or more days in an episode of care," and APTA's updated advisory says it "may be billed on Day 3 of monitoring." Under the 2023 version it needed 16 days.
- 98981 can take more than one unit. 60 minutes in a month is one 98980 plus two 98981.
The codes, one by one
What each code needs before you bill it and what APTA says to document. Rules are from APTA's January 2026 practice advisory unless noted.
98975: setup and patient education
- Bill it when
- The patient has activated their use of the device and at least two days of cumulative monitoring occur in a 30-day period. Once per episode of care. The earliest is day 3 of monitoring.
- Document
- The type of device, the specific education and training given to the patient or caregiver, and any setup required.
- Watch for
- Billing it on the setup day, or again in a later period of the same episode. When a PTA furnishes it, it is subject to the PTA payment adjustment.
98985 and 98977: musculoskeletal device supply
- Bill it when
- 98985 for 2 to 15 days of data in a 30-day period; 98977 for 16 or more. Never both for the same period: 15 days is 98985 only, 16 days is 98977 only.
- Document
- The name and description of the device provided for monitoring the musculoskeletal system.
- Watch for
- Only one practitioner can bill remote monitoring for a patient in a 30-day period (CMS). And an open question: APTA's second worked example says "Do not report 98977, as the patient already owns the device." Whether an app on the patient's own phone counts as a device you supplied is not settled in anything we have read. Ask your MAC or a billing reviewer before you rely on either answer.
98979: treatment management, first 10 minutes
- Bill it when
- A full 10 to 19 minutes of RTM treatment management in a calendar month, including at least one real-time interactive communication with the patient or caregiver.
- Document
- The data gathered from the device, the date and time of the interaction, and any decisions that change the treatment or plan of care.
- Watch for
- The interaction must be synchronous: in person, by telephone or by video. APTA adds that "telehealth and secure messaging would not be considered examples of this code." Minutes spent in the interaction cannot count toward any other code. Never bill 98979 and 98980 in the same month.
98980: treatment management, first 20 minutes
- Bill it when
- A full 20 minutes of treatment management in the calendar month, with at least one real-time interactive communication.
- Document
- The same as 98979: device data, the date and time of the interaction, and the decisions it led to.
- Watch for
- It replaces 98979, it does not add to it. A patient monitored across two calendar months needs 20 minutes in each month to bill 98980 in each.
98981: each additional 20 minutes
- Bill it when
- Each full additional 20 minutes after the first 20 in the same calendar month. 40 minutes is 98980 plus one 98981; 60 minutes is 98980 plus two.
- Document
- A time log that supports every minute of every unit.
- Watch for
- A partial block does not count: 39 minutes is still only 98980. This is the code Medicare denies most often for PTs (see below).
98984, 98976, 98986 and 98978: respiratory and CBT
- Use
- The same 2 to 15 and 16 to 30 day structure, for the respiratory system (98984, 98976) and cognitive behavioral therapy (98986, 98978). 98975 and the three management codes are not system-specific.
- For PTs
- Musculoskeletal monitoring uses 98985 and 98977. APTA says the CBT codes are not traditionally reported by PTs and to confirm eligibility per payer.
What can and can't be billed together
- 98985 or 98977 for a 30-day period, never both.
- 98979 or 98980 for a calendar month, never both. 98981 only on top of 98980.
- One practitioner can bill remote monitoring for a patient in a 30-day period (CMS). Give every RTM patient one owner. Our RTM playbook covers how clinics set that up.
- RTM or RPM, not both. CMS does not allow remote physiologic monitoring and RTM to be billed together.
- No time counted twice. Minutes in the required interaction count only toward the RTM code, and CMS allows remote monitoring alongside care management services only when time and effort are not counted twice.
- Day thresholds apply to device codes only. A month with 20 minutes of management and a live call supports 98980 whether the patient logged on 3 days or 30.
Three example months
The first three are APTA's own clinical examples, with our 2026 national rates added. The amounts are Medicare's allowed amount, which Medicare and the patient split 80/20.
| The month | Codes | Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Knee osteoarthritis, first month. 21 days of data, 25 minutes, one call.APTA case 1 | 98975 + 98977 + 98980 | $127.26 |
| Low back pain, first month, on a device the patient already owns. 26 days, 45 minutes.APTA case 2: no device code | 98975 + 98980 + 98981 | $117.24 |
| After a knee replacement. 4 days of data, 14 minutes, then RTM ends.APTA case 3 | 98975 + 98985 + 98979 | $99.54 |
| A later month for a stable patient. 12 days, 15 minutes with a call.Our example | 98985 + 98979 | $77.83 |
National non-facility amounts, CMS RVU26D. The fourth row shows why 2026 matters: before 98985 and 98979 existed, that month billed nothing.
Where the claims get denied
CMS's claims data for physical therapists in private practice shows one code standing apart. At least 43% of 98981 services were denied in 2025, up from about 10% in 2023, while 98980 was denied about 9% of the time. CMS does not publish the reasons, so nobody can tell you why. It does tell you the extra-time code gets looked at closely, and that a time log supporting every unit is the part worth getting right.
Bill the time you spent, never hold back time a patient needs to avoid a code, and if one patient keeps needing 98981, that usually means they need a visit rather than more monitoring. The playbook goes into how to match minutes to need.
Source: CMS Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary 2023 and 2025, provider specialty 65 (physical therapist in private practice), traditional Medicare. "At least" because CMS suppresses small counts.
Questions
Can I bill 98977 and 98985 in the same 30 days?
No. They are not additive. 2 to 15 days of data is 98985, 16 or more is 98977, and only one is reported for the period.
Is 98975 billable on the day I set the patient up?
No. The patient has to activate the device and log at least two days of monitoring first, so day 3 is the earliest. It is billed once per episode of care.
Does a secure message or a portal message count as the interactive communication?
No. APTA's advisory says it must be synchronous (in person, by telephone or by video), and that secure messaging would not be considered an example of this code.
Do the day thresholds apply to 98980?
No. CMS states the 2 to 15 and 16 or more day requirements do not apply to the treatment management codes.
What does Medicare pay for 98977 in 2026?
$51.44 nationally (1.54 RVUs x $33.4009), adjusted for your locality. 98985 pays the same. Some vendor pages quote different figures, so check the date and source of any rate you rely on.
Can a PTA provide RTM?
Yes, within limits. Since January 1, 2025, PTAs in private practice can work under general supervision for RTM. 98975 is subject to the PTA payment adjustment and the device codes are not. Our billing guide covers who can bill.
Does the device have to be FDA cleared?
The CPT descriptors call for a medical device "as defined by the FDA," which is not the same as FDA cleared, and the AMA does not verify any device's status. Some payers ask for more: Highmark requires FDA-authorized technology, and Blue Cross of Idaho excludes manual logs and non-FDA-compliant software. Rehabity is not an FDA-cleared device.
Which payers cover these codes?
Traditional Medicare does. Commercial payers disagree with each other: Cigna excludes all ten codes, while Anthem covers them with criteria. See which insurers cover RTM.
How Rehabity handles the codes
- Days are counted per 30-day period and minutes per calendar month, so the two clocks never get mixed up.
- Each code shows when it is final. 98977 on day 16, 98985 when the period ends, the management codes when the month ends.
- Review time is logged while you work in a chart, and every live call is recorded with what it covered.
- Each period and month produces a signed documentation packet to upload to your EMR. You bill the codes yourself.
See how the codes look on a real caseload.
We'll walk through how your RTM lead would enroll, review and bill, and how the rest of your team keeps working the way they do today.
Sources
- APTA Practice Advisory: Remote Therapeutic Monitoring Codes Under Medicare, updated January 29, 2026. Code descriptors, thresholds, documentation, PTA rules and the three clinical examples.
- CMS MLN901705, Telehealth and Remote Monitoring, December 2025. One practitioner per 30-day period, no RPM with RTM, consent, day thresholds.
- CMS 2026 Physician Fee Schedule relative value file RVU26D, October 2026 release, non-QP. Every rate on this page.
- CMS Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary, 2023 and 2025, provider specialty 65. Denial rates.
Read October 22, 2026. Coverage and documentation rules vary by payer, so check with yours and your Medicare Administrative Contractor. Spot an error? Tell us at contact@rehabityhealth.com and we will correct it.
Keep going
- How to bill RTM, step by step: consent, the plan of care, documentation and the mistakes that cost claims.
- Which insurers cover RTM? Each payer's published policy, sourced and dated.
- RTM revenue and time calculator: these rates for your locality, and the hours they take.