V5273 — Assistive listening device, for use with cochlear implant
V5273 is a HCPCS Level II code for assistive listening device, for use with cochlear implant. It belongs to the Vision, Hearing and Speech-Language Pathology section. Medicare does not pay it — see the coverage note below before you bill it.
Medicare coverage: Non-covered by statute
Excluded from coverage by the Social Security Act itself, not by a policy decision. No documentation and no appeal changes this one — an ABN is the relevant conversation.
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 statusN
Non-covered service. Medicare does not cover it.
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 V5273 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
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 V5273
- Long descriptor
- Assistive listening device, for use with cochlear implant
- Short descriptor
- Ald for cochlear implant
- Added
- January 1, 2002
- BETOS
- O1F
- 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 V5273
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If V5273 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- V5265Ear mold/insert, disposable, any type
- V5266Battery for use in hearing device
- V5267Hearing aid or assistive listening device/supplies/accessories, not otherwise specified
- V5268Assistive listening device, telephone amplifier, any type
- V5269Assistive listening device, alerting, any type
- V5270Assistive listening device, television amplifier, any type
- V5271Assistive listening device, television caption decoder
- V5272Assistive listening device, tdd
- V5274Assistive listening device, not otherwise specified
- V5275Ear impression, each
- V5281Assistive listening device, personal fm/dm system, monaural, (1 receiver, transmitter, microphone), any type
- V5282Assistive listening device, personal fm/dm system, binaural, (2 receivers, transmitter, microphone), any type
- V5283Assistive listening device, personal fm/dm neck, loop induction receiver
- V5284Assistive listening device, personal fm/dm, ear level receiver
- V5285Assistive listening device, personal fm/dm, direct audio input receiver
- V5286Assistive listening device, personal blue tooth fm/dm receiver
Questions about V5273
What is HCPCS code V5273?
V5273 is a HCPCS Level II code for assistive listening device, for use with cochlear implant. It sits in the Vision, Hearing and Speech-Language Pathology section.
Does Medicare cover V5273?
The CMS HCPCS file marks V5273 as "Non-covered by statute". Excluded from coverage by the Social Security Act itself, not by a policy decision. No documentation and no appeal changes this one — an ABN is the relevant conversation.
How is V5273 paid under the physician fee schedule?
V5273 carries PFS status code N. Non-covered service. Medicare does not cover it.