Cost analysis for CPT 71260 — Ct scan of chest with contrast
Average Medicare Payment
$49.74
2023 data
Total Payments (2023)
$85.3M
Services (2023)
1.8M
Price Change (2014–2023)
-18.0%
| Year | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | $60.66 | $93.9M | 1.7M | — |
| 2015 | $58.52 | $93.4M | 1.8M | -3.5% |
| 2016 | $57.04 | $95.7M | 1.8M | -2.5% |
| 2017 | $60.96 | $105.3M | 1.8M | +6.9% |
| 2018 | $57.50 | $100.6M | 1.8M | -5.7% |
| 2019 | $58.16 | $105.2M | 1.9M | +1.1% |
| 2020 | $58.06 | $97.2M | 1.7M | -0.2% |
| 2021 | $52.64 | $91.6M | 1.8M | -9.3% |
| 2022 | $50.39 | $83.1M | 1.7M | -4.3% |
| 2023 | $49.74 | $85.3M | 1.8M | -1.3% |
The most expensive state pays 1.6x more than the cheapest for this procedure. AK averages $63.67 vs WV at $39.21.
| State | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | Providers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AK | $63.67 | $294.3K | 4.6K | 57 |
| MD | $62.77 | $2.6M | 41.0K | 388 |
| FL | $59.78 | $5.9M | 99.3K | 1.2K |
| NJ | $57.15 | $2.2M | 37.8K | 541 |
| DC | $57.06 | $323.3K | 5.7K | 58 |
| CA | $56.63 | $7.9M | 140.0K | 1.7K |
| NV | $55.42 | $399.0K | 7.2K | 140 |
| AZ | $55.31 | $1.8M | 32.7K | 358 |
| NY | $52.37 | $5.6M | 107.1K | 1.1K |
| NM | $50.38 | $404.4K | 8.0K | 113 |
| AR | $50.28 | $1.3M | 26.2K | 218 |
| MN | $49.85 | $3.2M | 64.0K | 759 |
| CT | $49.13 | $913.9K | 18.6K | 259 |
| VA | $48.98 | $2.6M | 52.2K | 520 |
| MA | $48.89 | $3.3M | 67.5K | 550 |
| PR | $48.88 | $15.3K | 312 | 10 |
| WA | $48.84 | $1.9M | 38.7K | 463 |
| TN | $47.76 | $2.4M | 51.2K | 526 |
| TX | $47.07 | $6.5M | 137.2K | 1.7K |
| HI | $47.03 | $196.3K | 4.2K | 72 |
| WY | $46.76 | $129.1K | 2.8K | 35 |
| RI | $46.72 | $377.0K | 8.1K | 92 |
| XX | $46.72 | $15.0K | 322 | 2 |
| IL | $46.68 | $3.7M | 78.4K | 917 |
| CO | $46.66 | $1.4M | 30.3K | 405 |
| IA | $46.43 | $841.0K | 18.1K | 195 |
| UT | $46.34 | $377.1K | 8.1K | 147 |
| DE | $46.32 | $321.2K | 6.9K | 57 |
| AL | $46.08 | $1.0M | 22.5K | 310 |
| NC | $45.89 | $2.9M | 62.6K | 704 |
| OR | $44.93 | $877.1K | 19.5K | 252 |
| MT | $44.37 | $247.7K | 5.6K | 70 |
| PA | $44.36 | $3.7M | 83.5K | 946 |
| AP | $44.13 | $14.2K | 322 | 4 |
| GA | $44.09 | $1.7M | 38.7K | 544 |
| SC | $43.91 | $1.5M | 34.3K | 344 |
| OH | $43.69 | $2.4M | 55.5K | 726 |
| NH | $43.64 | $467.8K | 10.7K | 130 |
| KS | $43.35 | $895.6K | 20.7K | 183 |
| NE | $42.98 | $840.3K | 19.6K | 156 |
| ID | $42.48 | $379.3K | 8.9K | 102 |
| WI | $42.45 | $1.3M | 29.5K | 456 |
| MI | $42.43 | $2.2M | 53.0K | 609 |
| IN | $42.30 | $1.5M | 35.4K | 417 |
| MO | $42.30 | $2.1M | 49.9K | 489 |
| SD | $42.03 | $243.6K | 5.8K | 64 |
| KY | $41.97 | $797.1K | 19.0K | 232 |
| ME | $41.77 | $284.5K | 6.8K | 108 |
| LA | $41.59 | $624.4K | 15.0K | 281 |
| MS | $41.30 | $741.3K | 17.9K | 159 |
| GU | $41.00 | $5.6K | 136 | 4 |
| Provider | Specialty | State | Payments | Services | Avg/Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ronald Goodwich | Diagnostic Radiology | FL | $206.9K | 2.2K | $92.36 |
| Carolinas Imaging Services Llc | Independent Diagnostic Testing Facility (IDTF) | NC | $152.5K | 1.6K | $93.64 |
| Paul Makhlouf | Nuclear Medicine | FL | $145.3K | 1.5K | $94.90 |
| Medina Kushen | Nuclear Medicine | FL | $103.6K | 1.2K | $86.12 |
| Harbor Medical Associates, Inc. | Independent Diagnostic Testing Facility (IDTF) | MA | $99.0K | 1.3K | $75.94 |
| Asad Nasir | Nuclear Medicine | OH | $94.8K | 1.0K | $91.22 |
| Abida Taher | Nuclear Medicine | FL | $94.1K | 995 | $94.62 |
| Shawn Carter | Nuclear Medicine | FL | $92.3K | 1.1K | $85.49 |
| Rahul Sawlani | Diagnostic Radiology | IL | $90.6K | 2.1K | $42.39 |
| Eric Flagg | Diagnostic Radiology | CA | $84.4K | 1.5K | $57.93 |
| Subba Digumarthy | Diagnostic Radiology | MA | $82.0K | 1.1K | $71.32 |
| Adam Attoun | Diagnostic Radiology | CA | $79.6K | 799 | $99.67 |
| Varghese Cherian | Diagnostic Radiology | NY | $75.7K | 634 | $119.42 |
| Onofrio Catalano | Diagnostic Radiology | MA | $74.7K | 1.0K | $74.58 |
| Peter Lindley | Diagnostic Radiology | AR | $72.3K | 930 | $77.79 |
| Jeffrey Green | Diagnostic Radiology | TN | $72.2K | 1.1K | $67.54 |
| Allen Ardestani | Undefined Physician type | TN | $72.2K | 1.1K | $65.63 |
| Shaunagh Mcdermott | Diagnostic Radiology | MA | $69.5K | 1.0K | $69.55 |
| David Carlson | Nuclear Medicine | CA | $69.5K | 498 | $139.61 |
| Rolf Grage | Diagnostic Radiology | FL | $67.1K | 757 | $88.66 |
Based on the data, CPT 71260 shows a 1.6x variation in pricing across states — moderate variation by Medicare standards.
Costs have decreased 18% since 2014. Medicare's fee schedule attempts to standardize pricing, though some variation is expected due to geographic cost-of-living adjustments and practice expense differences.
This analysis is based on publicly available CMS data and does not account for patient complexity, comorbidities, or facility-specific factors that may justify pricing differences.
Note: All data is from publicly available Medicare records. OpenMedicare is an independent journalism project not affiliated with CMS.