CY 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule: Technical Corrections to Skin Substitute Payments
Key Summary
- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published a correction to the CY 2026 Physician Fee Schedule final rule on November 28, 2025.
- Corrections affect the classification and payment rate language for skin substitute products: references to “drug or biological product” were revised to “biological product.
- The final 2026 payment rate for skin substitutes is confirmed at $127.14/cm² (not $127.28/cm² as originally printed).
It appears that CMS has provided some “Thanksgiving leftovers” of their own, as they have issued a two-page correcting document (2025-21458) to address “typographical and technical errors” that appeared in the November 5 final rule (90 FR 49266) under the PFS and other Medicare Part B policies.1
What Was Corrected
The November 28, 2025 correction clarifies the description of skin substitute products as biological products — not “drug or biological products.”1 It also amends several lines of payment-rate descriptions in the printed final rule. Most notably, the payment rate for skin substitutes has been finalized uniformly as $127.14 per square centimeter.1
Why It Matters
Though the correction is administrative/technical, accurate classification and pricing of skin substitutes are critical for providers billing Medicare in 2026. The corrected rate and terminology ensure proper reimbursement and compliance with the final rule.1 In addition, this payment rate matches that published in the OPPS Final Rule last week.2
References
1. Medicare and Medicaid Programs; CY 2026 Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule and Other Changes to Part B Payment; Correcting Amendment. Federal Register. Published November 28, 2025. Accessed November 28, 2025. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/11/28/2025-21458/medicare-and-medicaid-programs-cy-2026-payment-policies-under-the-physician-fee-schedule-and-other
2. HMP Global Learning Network. 2026 OPPS and Ambulatory Surgical Center Final Rule Released. HMP Global Learning Network. Published November 2025. Accessed November 28, 2025. https://www.hmpgloballearningnetwork.com/site/wounds/news/2026-opps-and-ambulatory-surgical-center-final-rule-released
