L8618 — Transmitter cable for use with cochlear implant device or auditory osseointegrated device, replacement
L8618 is a HCPCS Level II code for transmitter cable for use with cochlear implant device or auditory osseointegrated device, replacement. It belongs to the Orthotic and Prosthetic Procedures and Devices 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 2026Q3-Jul. This states Medicare’s position on the code, not on your particular claim.
Medically Unlikely Edits — units per day
The most units of L8618 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
- 2 units MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Nature of Equipment
- outpatient
- 2 units MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Nature of Equipment
- DME supplier
- 0 — never payable MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · CMS 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 L8618
- Long descriptor
- Transmitter cable for use with cochlear implant device or auditory osseointegrated device, replacement
- Short descriptor
- Coch implant tran cable repl
- Added
- January 1, 2005
- BETOS
- D1F
- Pricing indicator
- 38 — 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.
Orthotics, prosthetics, prosthetic devices and vision services. Price subject to floors and ceilings.
Codes adjacent to L8618
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If L8618 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- L8609Artificial cornea
- L8610Ocular implant
- L8612Aqueous shunt
- L8613Ossicula implant
- L8614Cochlear device, includes all internal and external components
- L8615Headset/headpiece for use with cochlear implant device, replacement
- L8616Microphone for use with cochlear implant device, replacement
- L8617Transmitting coil for use with cochlear implant device, replacement
- L8619Cochlear implant, external speech processor and controller, integrated system, replacement
- L8621Zinc air battery for use with cochlear implant device and auditory osseointegrated sound processors, replacement, each
- L8622Alkaline battery for use with cochlear implant device, any size, replacement, each
- L8623Lithium ion battery for use with cochlear implant device speech processor, other than ear level, replacement, each
- L8624Lithium ion battery for use with cochlear implant or auditory osseointegrated device speech processor, ear level, replacement, each
- L8625External recharging system for battery for use with cochlear implant or auditory osseointegrated device, replacement only, each
- L8627Cochlear implant, external speech processor, component, replacement
- L8628Cochlear implant, external controller component, replacement
Questions about L8618
What is HCPCS code L8618?
L8618 is a HCPCS Level II code for transmitter cable for use with cochlear implant device or auditory osseointegrated device, replacement. It sits in the Orthotic and Prosthetic Procedures and Devices section.
Does Medicare cover L8618?
The CMS HCPCS file marks L8618 as "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.