J7609 — Albuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose, 1 mg
J7609 is a HCPCS Level II code for albuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose, 1 mg. It belongs to the Drugs Administered Other Than Oral Method section. Whether Medicare pays it depends on the coverage rule below.
Medicare coverage: Carrier judgment
Coverage is decided by your Medicare contractor, not by national policy. Whether this is paid depends on the LCD for your jurisdiction and on what the documentation supports.
From the coverage field of the CMS Alpha-Numeric HCPCS File, release 2026Q3-Jul. This states Medicare’s position on the code, not on your particular claim.
Physician fee schedule statusE
Excluded from the physician fee schedule by regulation. Payment, where it exists, comes from another fee schedule (drugs via ASP, supplies via DMEPOS, and so on).
Global period: XXX
Want the dollar amount for your locality? The fee calculator applies your GPCI and the current conversion factor.
Medically Unlikely Edits — units per day
The most units of J7609 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 · Compounded Drug Policy
- outpatient
- 0 — never payable MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Compounded Drug Policy
- DME supplier
- 0 — never payable MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Compounded Drug 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 2026Q3.
The CMS record for J7609
- Long descriptor
- Albuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose, 1 mg
- Short descriptor
- Albuterol comp unit
- Added
- January 1, 2007
- BETOS
- D1G
- Pricing indicator
- 51 — Other
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.
Drugs.
Codes adjacent to J7609
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If J7609 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- J7528Mycophenolate mofetil, for suspension, oral, 100 mg
- J7599Immunosuppressive drug, not otherwise classified
- J7601Ensifentrine, inhalation suspension, fda approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose form, 3 mg
- J7604Acetylcysteine, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose form, per gram
- J7605Arformoterol, inhalation solution, fda approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose form, 15 micrograms
- J7606Formoterol fumarate, inhalation solution, fda approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose form, 20 micrograms
- J7607Levalbuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, concentrated form, 0.5 mg
- J7608Acetylcysteine, inhalation solution, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose form, per gram
- J7610Albuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, concentrated form, 1 mg
- J7611Albuterol, inhalation solution, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, concentrated form, 1 mg
- J7612Levalbuterol, inhalation solution, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, concentrated form, 0.5 mg
- J7613Albuterol, inhalation solution, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose, 1 mg
- J7614Levalbuterol, inhalation solution, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme, unit dose, 0.5 mg
- J7615Levalbuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose, 0.5 mg
- J7620Albuterol, up to 2.5 mg and ipratropium bromide, up to 0.5 mg, fda-approved final product, non-compounded, administered through dme
- J7622Beclomethasone, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose form, per milligram
Questions about J7609
What is HCPCS code J7609?
J7609 is a HCPCS Level II code for albuterol, inhalation solution, compounded product, administered through dme, unit dose, 1 mg. It sits in the Drugs Administered Other Than Oral Method section.
Does Medicare cover J7609?
The CMS HCPCS file marks J7609 as "Carrier judgment". Coverage is decided by your Medicare contractor, not by national policy. Whether this is paid depends on the LCD for your jurisdiction and on what the documentation supports.
How is J7609 paid under the physician fee schedule?
J7609 carries PFS status code E. Excluded from the physician fee schedule by regulation. Payment, where it exists, comes from another fee schedule (drugs via ASP, supplies via DMEPOS, and so on).