B4100: Food thickener, administered orally, per ounce
B4100 is a HCPCS Level II code for food thickener, administered orally, per ounce. It belongs to the Enteral and Parenteral Therapy section. Medicare does not pay it: see the coverage note below before you bill it.
Medicare coverage: Non-covered by Medicare
Medicare does not cover the item or service this code describes.
From the coverage field of the CMS Alpha-Numeric HCPCS File, release 2026Q4-Oct. This states Medicare’s position on the code, not on your particular claim.
Medically Unlikely Edits: units per day
The most units of B4100 Medicare will pay on one date of service. Bill more on a single line and it is denied. The limit is not the same in every setting, so the row that matters is the one matching the claim you are building.
- practitioner
- 0, never payable MAI 3: Date of Service Edit: Clinical · CMS Policy
- outpatient
- 0, never payable MAI 3: Date of Service Edit: Clinical · CMS Policy
- DME supplier
- 0, never payable MAI 3: Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Published Contractor Policy
The adjudication indicator decides whether exceeding the limit is worth appealing at all: MAI 1 is a line edit you can support with documentation, MAI 3 is a date-of-service edit that is also appealable, and MAI 2 is absolute, no documentation overrides it. CMS MUE 2026Q4.
The CMS record for B4100
- Long descriptor
- Food thickener, administered orally, per ounce
- Short descriptor
- Food thickener oral
- Added
- January 1, 2003
- BETOS
- Z2
- Pricing indicator
- 00: Not priced by Part B
The official wording. This is what the code means.
CMS's 28-character form, which is what shows up on a remittance advice.
When CMS introduced the code.
Berenson-Eggers Type of Service: CMS's own analytic grouping.
Service not separately priced by Part B, not covered, bundled into another service, or used by Part A only.
Codes adjacent to B4100
HCPCS has no hierarchy: related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If B4100 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- B4034Enteral feeding supply kit; syringe fed, per day, includes but not limited to feeding/flushing syringe, administration set tubing, dressings, tape
- B4035Enteral feeding supply kit; pump fed, per day, includes but not limited to feeding/flushing syringe, administration set tubing, dressings, tape
- B4036Enteral feeding supply kit; gravity fed, per day, includes but not limited to feeding/flushing syringe, administration set tubing, dressings, tape
- B4081Nasogastric tubing with stylet
- B4082Nasogastric tubing without stylet
- B4083Stomach tube - levine type
- B4087Gastrostomy/jejunostomy tube, standard, any material, any type, each
- B4088Gastrostomy/jejunostomy tube, low-profile, any material, any type, each
- B4102Enteral formula, for adults, used to replace fluids and electrolytes (e.g., clear liquids), 500 ml = 1 unit
- B4103Enteral formula, for pediatrics, used to replace fluids and electrolytes (e.g., clear liquids), 500 ml = 1 unit
- B4104Additive for enteral formula (e.g., fiber)
- B4105In-line cartridge containing digestive enzyme(s) for enteral feeding, each
- B4148Enteral feeding supply kit; elastomeric control fed, per day, includes but not limited to feeding/flushing syringe, administration set tubing, dressings, tape
- B4149Enteral formula, manufactured blenderized natural foods with intact nutrients, includes proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, may include fiber, administered through an enteral feeding tube, 100 calories = 1 unit
- B4150Enteral formula, nutritionally complete with intact nutrients, includes proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, may include fiber, administered through an enteral feeding tube, 100 calories = 1 unit
- B4152Enteral formula, nutritionally complete, calorically dense (equal to or greater than 1.5 kcal/ml) with intact nutrients, includes proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, may include fiber, administered through an enteral feeding tube, 100 calories = 1 unit