J1955
J1955 – Injection, levocarnitine, per 1 gm · NDC Crosswalk & Billing Units
HCPCS Level II J-code · Medicare Part B drug billing
J-code
● 9 NDCs crosswalked per 1 GM $22.607/unit ASP+6%
📋 J1955 summary
J1955 is a HCPCS Level II J-code used to bill levocarnitine, per 1 gm, billed per 1 GM. The number of billing units to report depends on the dose administered and the NDC/package billed — use the calculator below.
Brand names associated with J1955: Carnitor*, Levocarnitine, Carnitor
Code J1955
Billing unit 1 GM Payment limit $22.607/unit NDC-Crosswalk 9
Quarter Q3 2026
RxCUI Atlas Trace the drug concept →
⚠ An NDC↔HCPCS crosswalk and a published payment limit do not guarantee payer coverage or payment. Always verify the current payer policy and claim format before billing.
🗂️ Key billing facts
HCPCS codeJ1955
DescriptorInjection, levocarnitine, per 1 gm
Billing unit1 GM
Payment limit / unit$22.607
Est. ASP / unit$21.327 est.
Mapped NDCs9
Data periodQ3 2026
Last updated2026-08-20
💊 About Levocarnitine DRUG GUIDE
Levocarnitine oral products (tablets and oral solutions) are used to treat primary systemic carnitine deficiency — a condition where the body has dangerously low levels of carnitine, which can cause symptoms like muscle weakness, low blood sugar, heart muscle disease (cardiomyopathy), and episodes that resemble Reye's syndrome.
They are also used for the ongoing treatment of secondary carnitine deficiency caused by inborn errors of metabolism (inherited conditions that disrupt how the body breaks down fats or certain acids).Levocarnitine injection (intravenous form, including Carnitor injection) shares those same uses and also carries an additional indication: preventing and treating carnitine deficiency in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) who are on hemodialysis.
Dialysis patients often lose carnitine during the treatment and may not replace enough through diet alone.
Clinical overview from our editorial drug guide for Levocarnitine. For billing reference, see the sections above.
🧾 Billing & reimbursement HCPCS · CMS · EFF. Q3 2026
📅 Payment limits effective Q3 2026 — from the CMS Medicare Part B Payment Limit File (revised quarterly).
Medicare payment limit / unit
$22.607
Est. ASP / unit
$21.327 est.
Est. after 2% sequester
$22.155
HCPCS dosage
1 GM
The CMS payment limit is the Medicare Part B drug allowance (ASP + 6%, statutory). After the 2% federal sequester the effective payment is ≈ ASP + 4.3%; estimated ASP = payment limit ÷ 1.06. Source: CMS Medicare Part B Payment Limit File (quarterly), Q3 2026.
Full HCPCS code details (official CMS record)
Long descriptionInjection, levocarnitine, per 1 gm
CoverageD — Special coverage instructions apply
Pricing indicator51 — Drug — priced under the ASP methodology
Type of service1 — Medical care
BETOS-2O1E
ASC payment group—
Action codeN — No maintenance this year
Effective date1997-01-01
Date added1996-01-01
Source: CMS HCPCS Level II code file (imported via admin).
🧮 Dosing & billing-units calculator HCPCS UNITS
One billing unit of J1955 = 1 gm. Enter a regimen to convert dose → billing units and project a full course.
Billing units = dose ÷ HCPCS unit size. Most payers require whole units — round per the payer's policy. “Est. Medicare pay” uses the current payment limit. For single-dose vials, drug discarded after administration may be separately billable with modifier JW (JZ when none is discarded) where allowed. Always verify payer-specific rounding before billing.
🔁 NDCs that bill under J1955 WITH EST. MEDICARE PAY
9 NDCs map to J1955. Bill units = how many HCPCS units one package represents. Est. pay / pkg = payment limit ($22.607/unit) × that package's bill units.
| NDC (11-digit) | Drug | Labeler | Package | Strength | Bill units | Est. pay / pkg | NADAC / unit | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 00143-9852-10 | Levocarnitine 1 g/5mL INJECTION | Hikma | 10 VIAL, SINGLE-USE in 1 CARTON (0143-9852... | 1 g/5mL | 10 | $226.07 | — | ● Active | CMS + PDAC |
| 00517-1045-05 | Levocarnitine 200 mg/mL INJECTION, SOLUTION | American | 5 VIAL, SINGLE-DOSE in 1 CARTON (0517-1045... | 200 mg/mL | 5 | $113.04 | — | ● Active | CMS + PDAC |
| 00517-1075-01 | Levocarnitine 200 mg/mL INJECTION, SOLUTION | American | 1 VIAL, SINGLE-DOSE in 1 CARTON (0517-1075... | 200 mg/mL | 4 | $90.43 | — | ● Active | CMS + PDAC |
| 54482-0147-01 | Carnitor levocarnitine 1 g/5mL INJECTION, SOLUTION | Leadiant | 5 VIAL in 1 CARTON (54482-147-01) / 5 mL... | 1 g/5mL | 5 | $113.04 | — | ● Active | CMS + PDAC |
| 73043-0034-05 | levocarnitine 1 g/5mL INJECTION, SOLUTION | Devatis | 5 VIAL in 1 CARTON (73043-034-05) / 5 mL... | 1 g/5mL | 0.2 | $4.52 | — | ● Active | PDAC |
| 00517-1045-01 | LEVOCARNITINE (SDV,PF) 200 MG/1 ML | Unknown | — | — | 0.2 | $4.52 | — | — | PDAC |
| 49452-1776-01 | L-CARNITINE HYDROCHLORIDE | Unknown | — | — | 1 | $22.61 | — | — | PDAC |
| 49452-1776-02 | L-CARNITINE HYDROCHLORIDE | Unknown | — | — | 1 | $22.61 | — | — | PDAC |
| 51927-1865-00 | LEVOCARNITINE 1 kg/kg POWDER | Professional | 1 kg in 1 CONTAINER (51927-1865-0) | 1 kg/kg | 1 | $22.61 | — | ● Active | PDAC |
NDC→HCPCS mappings come from the CMS ASP NDC-HCPCS crosswalk; additional DME MAC / DMEPOS mappings come from PDAC and are labeled separately. NADAC from CMS (weekly). “Status” reflects the product's marketing / obsolete flag in the NDC directory. Presence or absence here does not determine Medicare coverage. Linked NDCs open the full product page.
📊 Medicare utilization & spend CMS · PART B · 2026 (Q1)
Period
Total Part B spend
$526.4K
Claims
4,361
Beneficiaries
597
Spend / beneficiary
$881.82
Spend / claim
$120.72
Trend by period
Where J1955 ranks among Part B drugs · 2026 (Q1) · neighbors ±5
Total spending — #435 of 824
#430
OMNIPAQUE Q9965
$559.4K
#431
PRIALT J2278
$553.3K
#432
MILRINONE IN 5% DEXT... J2260
$551.1K
#433
RAPAMUNE* J7520
$539.9K
#434
CORIFACT J7180
$532.3K
#435
CARNITOR* J1955
$526.4K
#436
ASTAGRAF XL J7508
$524K
#437
HYMPAVZI PEN J7172
$521.5K
#438
AMNICORE PRO+, PER S... Q4299
$516.2K
#439
SIMULECT J0480
$512.7K
#440
IXEMPRA J9207
$507.9K
Total claims — #235 of 824
#230
BENDEKA J9034
4,474
#231
DALBAVANCIN HCL* J0875
4,418
#232
FYLNETRA Q5130
4,408
#233
CEFAZOLIN SODIUM-DEX... J0690
4,394
#234
ADRIAMYCIN* J9000
4,382
#235
CARNITOR* J1955
4,361
#236
SAPHNELO J0491
4,352
#237
TYENNE AUTOINJECTOR* Q5135
4,349
#238
TRAZIMERA Q5116
4,194
#239
CEFEPIME HCL J0692
4,085
#240
LACTATED RINGERS J7120
4,078
Top Medicare Part B drugs by the selected metric. Click any drug to open its J-code page. Source: CMS Medicare Quarterly Part B Spending by Drug.
Full breakdown by period (2)
| Period | Total spend | Beneficiaries | Claims | $/beneficiary | $/claim |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Q1) | $526.4K | 597 | 4,361 | $881.82 | $120.72 |
| 2025 (Q1-Q4) | $2.63M | 1,502 | 22,673 | $1,751.07 | $116.00 |
Provider-administered (Part B) spend, calculated for the whole HCPCS code (CMS does not publish Medicare spend per individual NDC). Self-administered use is covered under Part D instead. A blank patient count means fewer than 11 people — CMS hides counts that small to protect privacy. Source: CMS Medicare Quarterly Part B Spending by Drug (data.cms.gov), updated quarterly.
📈 Medicare Part B claims detail CMS PSPS · 2024
Calendar-year 2024 Medicare Part B fee-for-service activity for this HCPCS code, summed across all carriers, localities and specialties (CMS Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary). A “service” is one billed line/unit — not one claim — so counts run higher than claim counts.
Allowed charges
$2.68M
Medicare paid
$2.08M
Submitted services
122,074
Denial rate
9.7%
Allowed / service
$24.32
Submitted charges
$7.37M
Source: CMS Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary (PSPS), CY2024 — Medicare Part B carrier + DME fee-for-service claims (excludes Medicare Advantage). Figures are for the whole HCPCS code, which may cover uses beyond this drug. ⚠ CMS hides any figure covering fewer than 11 patients (a privacy rule), so totals — especially denials and low-volume codes — run a little low.
🗺️ Where J1955 is utilized CMS · BY PROVIDER · 2024
Medicare Part B services for this code by the rendering provider's state — 116,670 services across 11 states & territories in 2024 (CMS reports include DC and U.S. territories). Switch to per 100k to compare states fairly regardless of population. Hover or tap a state for its top ZIP codes.
Hover or tap a state to see its numbers + top ZIP codes.
Per-capita = services ÷ 2023 state population × 100,000 (so high-population states aren't automatically "hotter"). Counts reflect the provider's location, not the patient's. Providers with fewer than 11 patients are hidden by CMS for privacy, so totals run low and per-100k can be noisy in small states — read this as relative geography, not exact counts. Source: CMS Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners — by Provider and Service, 2024.
📊 What bills under J1955
J-codes are billing codes often used for drugs billed under the medical benefit. This connects the billing code to the NDC package records it covers, by ingredient and labeler.
NDC products by ingredient
NDC products by labeler
🗃️ Data sources & freshness
Every figure on this page is computed from public datasets. Here's what each section draws on and how current it is.
HCPCS code & descriptor
CMS HCPCS Level II code file
Loaded
Payment limit & billing unit
CMS Medicare Part B ASP Pricing File (quarterly)
Q3 2026 · as of 2026-08-20
NDC ↔ HCPCS crosswalk
CMS ASP NDC-HCPCS crosswalk + DMEPDAC (PDAC)
9 NDCs mapped
NADAC acquisition cost
CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (weekly)
Not available for mapped NDCs
Utilization & spend
CMS Part B Spending by Drug · PSPS · Physician & Other Practitioners
Latest data year 2026
Figures are estimates for reference and may lag the source files. Always verify against the current CMS files and your payer's policy before submitting claims.
⚠️ Practical billing caveats
- A crosswalk is not coverage. An NDC mapping or a published payment limit does not guarantee a payer will cover or pay this code. Check the specific plan's policy.
- Units ≠ milligrams. Bill the number of HCPCS units (dose ÷ the code's unit size), not the milligram dose. Use the calculator above.
- Discarded drug. For single-dose vials, drug discarded after administration may be separately billable with modifier JW (and JZ when nothing is discarded) where the payer allows.
- Rounding & partial units. Many payers require whole units; round per the payer's policy, not automatically up.
- The code can cover more than this drug. Some HCPCS codes span multiple products or strengths — confirm the exact code for the product administered.
- Figures lag. ASP limits change quarterly and utilization data are released with a delay. Verify against the current CMS files before billing.
❓ J1955 billing FAQ
What is HCPCS code J1955?
J1955 is a HCPCS Level II J-code used to bill Injection, levocarnitine, per 1 gm under Medicare Part B and most medical (not pharmacy) benefits.
What is the billing unit for J1955?
One unit of J1955 represents 1 GM. Report the number of units equal to the dose administered divided by 1 GM.
How many units of J1955 should I bill?
Divide the dose administered by the code's unit size (1 GM) to get the number of billing units, then round per your payer's policy. The calculator on this page converts a dose into billing units and projects a full course.
How much does Medicare pay for J1955?
The Medicare Part B payment limit is $22.607 per unit (Q3 2026), based on ASP + 6%. After the 2% sequester the effective payment is about $22.155 per unit. Payment limits are revised quarterly.
Which NDCs bill under J1955?
9 NDCs currently map to J1955 in the CMS ASP NDC-HCPCS crosswalk. See the NDC crosswalk table above for each product, package, billing units and estimated reimbursement.
Does a crosswalk mean J1955 is covered?
No. An NDC-to-HCPCS crosswalk and a published payment limit do not guarantee coverage or payment. Coverage depends on the payer, the diagnosis and the site of care — always verify the current policy before billing.
For professional billing reference only — verify against the current CMS files before submitting claims.