Travel Allowance Increased By 1.0%-1.5% For 2018
CMS has published the updated payment amounts for Travel Allowances, HCPCS codes P9603 (per mileage basis) and P9604 (per trip basis).
The updated rates were forwarded to Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) on December 22, 2017, in Transmittal 3942, Change Request 10448, of CMS's Medicare Claims Processing Manual.
The 2018 Rates are:
P9603 $1.00 (minimum) per mile
P9604 $10.00 minimum, one-way flat rate
An excerpt from CMS's Transmittal 3942 (Change Request 10448) that details the payment policies for codes P9603 and P9604 can be found here.
The changes increase the Travel Allowance by 1% for code P9603 and 1.5% for code P9604 over the 2017 rates:
| 2018 | 2017 | |
| P9603 | $1.00 | $0.99 |
| P9604 | $10.00 | $9.85 |
The increases are effective January 1, 2018, with an implementation date of January 22, 2018.