E0273 — Bed board
E0273 is a HCPCS Level II code for bed board. It belongs to the Durable Medical Equipment section. Medicare does not pay it — see the coverage note below before you bill it.
Medicare coverage: Non-covered by Medicare
Medicare does not cover the item or service this code describes.
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 E0273 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
- 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 E0273
- Long descriptor
- Bed board
- Short descriptor
- Bed board
- Added
- January 1, 1986
- BETOS
- D1B
- 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 E0273
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If E0273 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- E0256Hospital bed, variable height, hi-lo, with any type side rails, without mattress
- E0260Hospital bed, semi-electric (head and foot adjustment), with any type side rails, with mattress
- E0261Hospital bed, semi-electric (head and foot adjustment), with any type side rails, without mattress
- E0265Hospital bed, total electric (head, foot and height adjustments), with any type side rails, with mattress
- E0266Hospital bed, total electric (head, foot and height adjustments), with any type side rails, without mattress
- E0270Hospital bed, institutional type includes: oscillating, circulating and stryker frame, with mattress
- E0271Mattress, innerspring
- E0272Mattress, foam rubber
- E0274Over-bed table
- E0275Bed pan, standard, metal or plastic
- E0276Bed pan, fracture, metal or plastic
- E0277Powered pressure-reducing air mattress
- E0280Bed cradle, any type
- E0290Hospital bed, fixed height, without side rails, with mattress
- E0291Hospital bed, fixed height, without side rails, without mattress
- E0292Hospital bed, variable height, hi-lo, without side rails, with mattress
Questions about E0273
What is HCPCS code E0273?
E0273 is a HCPCS Level II code for bed board. It sits in the Durable Medical Equipment section.
Does Medicare cover E0273?
The CMS HCPCS file marks E0273 as "Non-covered by Medicare". Medicare does not cover the item or service this code describes.