Q0488 — Power pack base for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
Q0488 is a HCPCS Level II code for power pack base for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only. It belongs to the Temporary Codes 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.
Physician fee schedule statusE
Excluded from the physician fee schedule by regulation. Payment, where it exists, comes from another fee schedule (drugs via ASP, supplies via DMEPOS, and so on).
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 Q0488 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
- 1 unit MAI 3 — Date of Service Edit: Clinical · Nature of Equipment
- outpatient
- 1 unit 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 Q0488
- Long descriptor
- Power pack base for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Short descriptor
- Pwr pack base elec vad, rep
- Added
- October 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 Q0488
HCPCS has no hierarchy — related items simply sit next to each other in the numbering. If Q0488 is not quite right, the correct code is very often within a few positions of it.
- Q0480Driver for use with pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0481Microprocessor control unit for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0482Microprocessor control unit for use with electric/pneumatic combination ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0483Monitor/display module for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0484Monitor/display module for use with electric or electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0485Monitor control cable for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0486Monitor control cable for use with electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0487Leads (pneumatic/electrical) for use with any type electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0489Power pack base for use with electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0490Emergency power source for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0491Emergency power source for use with electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0492Emergency power supply cable for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0493Emergency power supply cable for use with electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0494Emergency hand pump for use with electric or electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0495Battery/power pack charger for use with electric or electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
- Q0496Battery, other than lithium-ion, for use with electric or electric/pneumatic ventricular assist device, replacement only
Questions about Q0488
What is HCPCS code Q0488?
Q0488 is a HCPCS Level II code for power pack base for use with electric ventricular assist device, replacement only. It sits in the Temporary Codes section.
Does Medicare cover Q0488?
The CMS HCPCS file marks Q0488 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.
How is Q0488 paid under the physician fee schedule?
Q0488 carries PFS status code E. Excluded from the physician fee schedule by regulation. Payment, where it exists, comes from another fee schedule (drugs via ASP, supplies via DMEPOS, and so on).