Cost analysis for CPT 87481 — Detection test for candida species (yeast), amplified probe technique
Average Medicare Payment
$34.22
2023 data
Total Payments (2023)
$67.5M
Services (2023)
2.0M
Price Change (2014–2023)
-22.2%
| Year | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | $44.01 | $4.6M | 107.5K | — |
| 2015 | $43.60 | $5.9M | 147.2K | -0.9% |
| 2016 | $43.95 | $7.5M | 191.2K | +0.8% |
| 2017 | $43.30 | $5.8M | 151.2K | -1.5% |
| 2018 | $41.99 | $8.0M | 189.3K | -3.0% |
| 2019 | $37.89 | $16.4M | 431.0K | -9.8% |
| 2020 | $34.69 | $22.5M | 646.3K | -8.4% |
| 2021 | $34.94 | $37.0M | 1.1M | +0.7% |
| 2022 | $34.53 | $49.0M | 1.4M | -1.2% |
| 2023 | $34.22 | $67.5M | 2.0M | -0.9% |
The most expensive state pays 1.5x more than the cheapest for this procedure. NH averages $34.39 vs IN at $22.89.
| State | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | Providers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NH | $34.39 | $5.8K | 168 | 1 |
| WY | $34.39 | $4.9K | 143 | 4 |
| NV | $34.39 | $29.5K | 859 | 3 |
| UT | $34.39 | $138.3K | 4.0K | 2 |
| SC | $34.39 | $6.8K | 199 | 5 |
| NE | $34.39 | $47.3K | 1.4K | 9 |
| LA | $34.39 | $1.7M | 48.2K | 20 |
| VA | $34.39 | $1.3M | 37.8K | 22 |
| PA | $34.38 | $10.9M | 317.3K | 19 |
| OH | $34.38 | $432.8K | 12.6K | 6 |
| AZ | $34.38 | $517.8K | 15.1K | 11 |
| MI | $34.37 | $381.0K | 11.1K | 14 |
| CO | $34.37 | $1.3M | 37.1K | 51 |
| OK | $34.37 | $2.5M | 73.6K | 36 |
| MD | $34.37 | $2.7M | 79.3K | 56 |
| NC | $34.37 | $246.5K | 7.2K | 6 |
| TX | $34.36 | $18.6M | 540.5K | 270 |
| KS | $34.36 | $158.7K | 4.6K | 11 |
| MA | $34.35 | $283.5K | 8.3K | 31 |
| AR | $34.34 | $1.3M | 36.6K | 32 |
| MN | $34.34 | $100.6K | 2.9K | 8 |
| WA | $34.33 | $257.4K | 7.5K | 17 |
| NY | $34.33 | $2.0M | 58.3K | 44 |
| MS | $34.32 | $2.4M | 69.9K | 39 |
| DE | $34.32 | $107.3K | 3.1K | 19 |
| FL | $34.31 | $5.7M | 167.6K | 79 |
| TN | $34.28 | $247.4K | 7.2K | 10 |
| KY | $34.28 | $58.1K | 1.7K | 6 |
| NM | $34.27 | $70.9K | 2.1K | 10 |
| IL | $34.27 | $2.8M | 82.8K | 60 |
| CA | $34.27 | $7.0M | 203.6K | 96 |
| WI | $34.23 | $96.9K | 2.8K | 4 |
| GA | $34.17 | $30.9K | 904 | 9 |
| ME | $34.16 | $4.0K | 117 | 1 |
| CT | $34.10 | $22.3K | 655 | 5 |
| IA | $34.09 | $27.5K | 806 | 8 |
| OR | $34.08 | $58.6K | 1.7K | 5 |
| NJ | $33.94 | $3.1M | 90.6K | 51 |
| AL | $33.79 | $84.4K | 2.5K | 14 |
| MO | $31.61 | $194.1K | 6.1K | 9 |
| IN | $22.89 | $599.8K | 26.2K | 8 |
| Provider | Specialty | State | Payments | Services | Avg/Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silverpath, Inc. | Clinical Laboratory | PA | $6.1M | 176.5K | $34.39 |
| Healthtrackrx Indiana, Inc | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $3.5M | 101.3K | $34.34 |
| Cap Diagnostics Llc | Clinical Laboratory | FL | $2.5M | 72.5K | $34.37 |
| Medarbor Llc | Clinical Laboratory | PA | $2.3M | 65.8K | $34.39 |
| Yellowstone Labs, Llc | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $1.7M | 48.1K | $34.39 |
| Medical Diagnostic Laboratories,llc | Clinical Laboratory | NJ | $1.3M | 38.5K | $34.34 |
| Texas Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $1.1M | 33.2K | $34.39 |
| Gmi Laboratories Llc | Clinical Laboratory | CA | $1.1M | 32.3K | $34.39 |
| Cormeum Lab Services Llc | Clinical Laboratory | LA | $1.1M | 31.9K | $34.39 |
| Riem Badr | Pathology | NY | $1.1M | 31.7K | $34.31 |
| Realtox Labs, Llc | Clinical Laboratory | MD | $1.0M | 30.5K | $34.39 |
| Star Medical Laboratory Inc | Clinical Laboratory | CA | $1.0M | 30.4K | $34.39 |
| Qitek Labs Of Oklahoma Llc | Clinical Laboratory | OK | $1.0M | 30.3K | $34.39 |
| Proteus Genomics, Llc | Clinical Laboratory | MS | $1.0M | 30.2K | $34.39 |
| Freedom Pathology Partners Llc | Clinical Laboratory | PA | $969.1K | 28.2K | $34.36 |
| Texas Diagnostic Laboratories Llc | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $916.1K | 26.6K | $34.39 |
| Coronado Labs Llc | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $845.0K | 24.6K | $34.39 |
| American Premier Labs | Clinical Laboratory | TX | $802.5K | 23.3K | $34.39 |
| Laboratory Of Florida Llc | Clinical Laboratory | FL | $728.8K | 21.2K | $34.39 |
| Sma Medical, Inc. | Clinical Laboratory | PA | $714.0K | 20.8K | $34.36 |
Based on the data, CPT 87481 shows a 1.5x variation in pricing across states — moderate variation by Medicare standards.
Costs have decreased 22.2% 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.