E0946: Fracture, frame, dual with cross bars, attached to bed, (e.g., balken, 4 poster)
E0946 is a HCPCS Level II code for fracture, frame, dual with cross bars, attached to bed, (e.g., balken, 4 poster). It belongs to the Durable Medical Equipment section. Whether Medicare pays it depends on the coverage rule below.
Medicare coverage: Special coverage instructions apply
There are published conditions attached to this code. Check the applicable coverage policy before billing it: the code being valid is not the same as the service being covered.
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 E0946 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
- 1 unit MAI 2: Date of Service Edit: Policy · Code Descriptor / CPT Instruction
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 E0946
- Long descriptor
- Fracture, frame, dual with cross bars, attached to bed, (e.g., balken, 4 poster)
- Short descriptor
- Fracture frame dual w cross
- Added
- January 1, 1986
- BETOS
- D1E
- Pricing indicator
- 36: DMEPOS
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.
Capped rental DME. Price subject to floors and ceilings.
Codes adjacent to E0946
HCPCS has no hierarchy: related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If E0946 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- E0930Fracture frame, free standing, includes weights
- E0935Continuous passive motion exercise device for use on knee only
- E0936Continuous passive motion exercise device for use other than knee
- E0940Trapeze bar, free standing, complete with grab bar
- E0941Gravity assisted traction device, any type
- E0942Cervical head harness/halter
- E0944Pelvic belt/harness/boot
- E0945Extremity belt/harness
- E0947Fracture frame, attachments for complex pelvic traction
- E0948Fracture frame, attachments for complex cervical traction
- E0950Wheelchair accessory, tray, each
- E0951Heel loop/holder, any type, with or without ankle strap, each
- E0952Toe loop/holder, any type, each
- E0953Wheelchair accessory, lateral thigh or knee support, any type including fixed mounting hardware, each
- E0954Wheelchair accessory, foot box, any type, includes attachment and mounting hardware, each foot
- E0955Wheelchair accessory, headrest, cushioned, any type, including fixed mounting hardware, each