Cost analysis for CPT A0429 — Ambulance service, basic life support, emergency transport (bls-emergency)
Average Medicare Payment
$340.30
2023 data
Total Payments (2023)
$888.4M
Services (2023)
2.6M
Price Change (2014–2023)
+22.3%
| Year | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | $278.27 | $790.2M | 2.8M | — |
| 2015 | $282.97 | $827.6M | 2.9M | +1.7% |
| 2016 | $281.75 | $835.9M | 3.0M | -0.4% |
| 2017 | $284.08 | $839.7M | 3.0M | +0.8% |
| 2018 | $287.74 | $846.4M | 2.9M | +1.3% |
| 2019 | $295.00 | $843.7M | 2.9M | +2.5% |
| 2020 | $300.92 | $775.6M | 2.6M | +2.0% |
| 2021 | $303.64 | $776.7M | 2.6M | +0.9% |
| 2022 | $314.42 | $830.9M | 2.6M | +3.6% |
| 2023 | $340.30 | $888.4M | 2.6M | +8.2% |
The most expensive state pays 2.8x more than the cheapest for this procedure. AK averages $399.04 vs GU at $141.02.
| State | Avg Payment | Total Payments | Services | Providers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AK | $399.04 | $3.2M | 8.0K | 26 |
| DC | $382.23 | $2.7M | 7.2K | 2 |
| CA | $378.67 | $73.8M | 195.0K | 220 |
| WY | $378.02 | $946.2K | 2.5K | 11 |
| SD | $375.59 | $3.5M | 9.3K | 83 |
| ND | $375.28 | $2.4M | 6.5K | 66 |
| HI | $372.08 | $1.2M | 3.1K | 3 |
| MT | $371.97 | $3.7M | 10.1K | 65 |
| NJ | $370.21 | $52.1M | 140.9K | 227 |
| NY | $365.86 | $86.7M | 237.0K | 487 |
| MA | $364.12 | $49.1M | 134.8K | 271 |
| WA | $363.14 | $28.2M | 77.8K | 179 |
| CO | $361.96 | $8.6M | 23.9K | 105 |
| CT | $360.37 | $19.5M | 54.0K | 131 |
| MD | $359.94 | $30.9M | 85.8K | 109 |
| MN | $359.11 | $9.8M | 27.4K | 141 |
| OR | $351.38 | $7.8M | 22.2K | 80 |
| RI | $346.86 | $2.5M | 7.2K | 46 |
| NM | $346.26 | $3.0M | 8.6K | 46 |
| NH | $345.54 | $4.4M | 12.7K | 96 |
| AZ | $342.92 | $12.7M | 37.0K | 78 |
| NE | $341.67 | $7.0M | 20.6K | 160 |
| NV | $341.12 | $5.2M | 15.4K | 28 |
| MP | $340.16 | $153.8K | 452 | 2 |
| VA | $339.44 | $28.2M | 83.0K | 226 |
| DE | $335.18 | $11.9M | 35.5K | 57 |
| IL | $334.32 | $36.5M | 109.3K | 472 |
| TX | $333.87 | $43.1M | 129.1K | 441 |
| KS | $333.51 | $7.0M | 20.8K | 112 |
| VT | $333.28 | $4.2M | 12.6K | 62 |
| PA | $331.21 | $46.7M | 141.1K | 538 |
| ME | $330.95 | $5.4M | 16.2K | 128 |
| WI | $329.16 | $15.8M | 48.1K | 301 |
| FL | $329.11 | $46.4M | 140.9K | 155 |
| IA | $328.56 | $7.7M | 23.3K | 199 |
| ID | $325.54 | $3.3M | 10.2K | 55 |
| MI | $325.24 | $21.8M | 66.9K | 208 |
| UT | $323.12 | $2.5M | 7.9K | 40 |
| PR | $323.06 | $608.3K | 1.9K | 49 |
| OK | $321.75 | $9.2M | 28.5K | 97 |
| MO | $320.33 | $11.1M | 34.8K | 167 |
| NC | $316.21 | $22.4M | 70.8K | 143 |
| OH | $315.56 | $29.2M | 92.4K | 695 |
| IN | $314.75 | $15.3M | 48.7K | 194 |
| GA | $314.68 | $20.0M | 63.6K | 144 |
| AR | $312.43 | $6.0M | 19.2K | 52 |
| SC | $311.90 | $20.8M | 66.7K | 73 |
| LA | $311.58 | $7.3M | 23.6K | 34 |
| TN | $311.06 | $11.6M | 37.4K | 96 |
| AL | $309.93 | $9.2M | 29.7K | 112 |
| MS | $306.04 | $5.5M | 18.0K | 23 |
| Provider | Specialty | State | Payments | Services | Avg/Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seniorcare Emergency Medical Services Inc. | Ambulance Service Provider | NY | $12.7M | 32.7K | $388.02 |
| New York City Health And Hospitals Corporation | Ambulance Service Provider | NY | $12.2M | 31.9K | $383.77 |
| Cataldo Ambulance Service Inc | Ambulance Service Provider | MA | $5.7M | 15.8K | $361.02 |
| Montgomery County Maryland Government | Ambulance Service Provider | MD | $5.7M | 14.7K | $386.99 |
| Falck Mobile Health Corp | Ambulance Service Provider | CA | $5.4M | 14.5K | $374.74 |
| Baltimore County Maryland Office Of Finance | Ambulance Service Provider | MD | $5.3M | 14.9K | $359.35 |
| City Of Philadelphia | Ambulance Service Provider | PA | $5.3M | 15.3K | $349.82 |
| Boston Public Health Commission | Ambulance Service Provider | MA | $4.8M | 12.5K | $384.62 |
| American Medical Response Of Connecticut Incorporated | Ambulance Service Provider | CT | $4.7M | 13.0K | $362.68 |
| Empress Ambulance Service Llc | Ambulance Service Provider | NY | $4.6M | 12.4K | $373.86 |
| Brewster Ambulance Service Inc. | Ambulance Service Provider | MA | $4.3M | 11.8K | $366.68 |
| Richmond County Ambulance Service, Inc | Ambulance Service Provider | NY | $4.2M | 11.1K | $382.57 |
| Tri-Med Ambulance Llc | Ambulance Service Provider | WA | $4.2M | 10.8K | $386.31 |
| Acadian Ambulance Service, Inc. | Ambulance Service Provider | LA | $4.1M | 13.5K | $306.83 |
| American Professional Ambulance Corp | Ambulance Service Provider | CA | $4.0M | 10.5K | $383.55 |
| Elite Medical Transportation Llc | Ambulance Service Provider | IL | $3.9M | 11.5K | $343.59 |
| City Of Los Angeles | Ambulance Service Provider | CA | $3.9M | 10.2K | $380.41 |
| Falck Northern California Corp. | Ambulance Service Provider | CA | $3.6M | 8.5K | $418.91 |
| American Medical Response Ambulance Service Inc | Ambulance Service Provider | WA | $3.5M | 9.2K | $385.53 |
| Robert Wood Johnson Health Network Inc | Ambulance Service Provider | NJ | $3.5M | 9.3K | $371.63 |
The data suggests significant pricing inconsistencies for CPT A0429. With a 2.8x price gap between the most and least expensive states, geography plays an outsized role in what Medicare pays for this procedure.
Costs have risen 22.3% since 2014, outpacing inflation and raising questions about whether reimbursement rates reflect actual costs.
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.