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CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

CPT code 0142U designates a Proprietary Laboratory Analyses (PLA) test for the ePlex® BCID gram–negative panel by GenMark Diagnostics, a rapid molecular diagnostic assay for detecting gram–negative bacterial targets, key resistance genes, and Candida from positive blood cultures. This code matters nationally because rapid identification of bloodstream pathogens and resistance markers can influence antibiotic selection, infection control, and hospital resource use.

Key payers covered in the analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise overview of the clinical use of the assay, the typical site of service (hospital or reference laboratories), and the national implications for laboratory and inpatient care pathways. The publication describes how the code is used for reporting a single-vendor, specific-test PLA and summarizes what stakeholders should know about coding clarity for proprietary assays.

The report provides benchmarks and payer coverage context where available, highlights policy considerations for PLA codes, and situates the clinical role of the ePlex BCID gram–negative panel within diagnostic workflows for bacteremia and candidemia. Data not available in the input will be noted as such in relevant sections.

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Billing Code Overview

CPT code 0142U is a Proprietary Laboratory Analyses (PLA) code for the ePlex® BCID gram–negative panel from GenMark Diagnostics Inc. The test uses an automated amplified probe technique for rapid detection of multiple bloodstream infection targets, including 21 gram–negative bacterial targets, 6 resistance genes, 1 pan gram–negative bacterial target, and 1 pan Candida target from positive blood cultures.

Service type: Clinical laboratory molecular diagnostic test for pathogen and resistance gene detection.

Typical site of service: Hospital clinical laboratory or centralized reference laboratory processing positive blood culture specimens.

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CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

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Billing Code Overview

Service type: Clinical laboratory molecular diagnostic test for pathogen and resistance gene detection.

Typical site of service: Hospital clinical laboratory or centralized reference laboratory processing positive blood culture specimens.

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

A hospitalized adult presents with signs of sepsis: fever, hypotension, tachycardia, and altered mental status. Blood cultures obtained at the bedside grow organisms on Gram stain showing gram-negative bacilli. The clinical team requests rapid pathogen identification and resistance marker detection to guide early antimicrobial therapy. The laboratory performs the ePlex® BCID gram–negative panel using an automated amplified probe technique on a positive blood culture bottle. Results reporting includes identification of targeted gram-negative bacteria, detection of key resistance genes, and pan-Candida/pan-gram-positive targets to assist in narrowing or broadening empiric therapy. Typical workflow: blood cultures drawn in the emergency department or inpatient unit → incubation and growth detected in automated blood culture system → positive bottle forwarded to microbiology lab → laboratory technologist performs the ePlex® BCID gram–negative panel (report with 0142U) → results communicated to the treating team and antimicrobial stewardship when available. Typical site of service: hospital inpatient laboratory and hospital emergency department with specimen collection at bedside. Typical patient scenario: adult with suspected bacteremia/sepsis after urinary tract infection or intra-abdominal infection, positive blood culture with gram-negative bacilli on Gram stain, requiring rapid organism and resistance gene identification to optimize antimicrobial therapy.

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	No modifier — full global service	Use when no modifier is applicable and the service is reported normally.
`22`	Increased procedural services	Use when the laboratory documents substantial additional work or complexity beyond the typical test (rare for PLA tests).
`26`	Professional component	Use when only the professional interpretation/component is billed separately by a physician or qualified practitioner.
`52`	Reduced services	Use when the test is partially reduced or not completed as originally intended.
`53`	Discontinued procedure	Use if testing was started but discontinued for reason unrelated to patient’s condition.
`62`	Two surgeons — concurrent modifiers for surgical context	Uncommon for this lab test; used only if related to bundled surgical billing requiring attribution.
`78`	Return to operating room for a related procedure	Not typically applicable but listed for completeness when lab testing follows reoperation billing events.
`80`	Assistant surgeon	Not typically applicable; used if billing context requires reporting of assistant involvement in a related surgical episode.
`82`	Assistant surgeon (when qualified resident not available)	Same limited relevance as `80` — included when applicable to associated operative services.
`QK`	Medical direction of two, three, or four concurrent anesthesia procedures	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included when anesthesia-related billing occurs in the same encounter.
`QX`	CRNA service with medical direction	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included for completeness in perioperative encounters.
`QY`	Medical direction of one CRNA by an anesthesiologist	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included for perioperative billing context.
`TC`	Technical component	Use when only the technical component (laboratory instrumentation and processing) is billed by the performing laboratory separate from professional interpretation.
`AD`	Medical team participation in global surgical package	Rarely applicable; used if lab testing is part of an episode where an additional medical team is involved.

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
208000000X	Pathology	Clinical laboratory/pathology oversight, interpretation and reporting of microbiology results.
207Q00000X	Infectious Disease	Clinicians who order and act on rapid blood culture identification for antimicrobial management.
207L00000X	Hospitalist	Inpatient physicians ordering tests and managing sepsis/bacteremia patients.
333600000X	Clinical Laboratory Technologist/Technician	Laboratory professionals performing the ePlex assay and processing specimens.
363L00000X	Microbiology Technician	Specialists in bacteriology and molecular detection performing and validating the test.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`A41.9`	Sepsis, unspecified organism	Common presenting diagnosis prompting rapid blood-culture-based molecular testing to identify causative gram-negative pathogens.
`A41.5`	Sepsis due to other Gram-negative organisms	Directly relevant — indicates gram-negative sepsis where the ePlex gram–negative panel assists in rapid identification.
`R65.20`	Severe sepsis without septic shock	Indicates systemic inflammatory response and organ dysfunction where rapid pathogen ID influences management.
`R65.21`	Severe sepsis with septic shock	High-acuity scenario requiring rapid detection of organisms and resistance markers to guide therapy.
`N39.0`	Urinary tract infection, site not specified	UTI can be a source of gram-negative bacteremia leading to positive blood cultures tested with this panel.
`K65.0`	Acute peritonitis	Intra-abdominal infections are common sources of gram-negative bacteremia prompting this test.
`J18.9`	Pneumonia, unspecified organism	Pneumonia can lead to bacteremia with gram-negative organisms; rapid ID supports targeted therapy.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`87070`	Culture, blood, aerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification of aerobic organisms	Performed prior to or alongside molecular testing; provides organism isolation and susceptibility workflow.
`87076`	Culture, blood, aerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification of organisms; any source, multiple pathogens (automated)	Alternate culture code used in bacteremia workups; complements rapid PLA testing by providing isolates for full susceptibility.
`87471`	Infectious agent detection by nucleic acid (DNA or RNA); Chlamydia trachomatis, amplified probe technique	Example molecular amplification CPT; included to represent molecular nucleic acid amplification methodology in lab workflows (different analyte).
`87499`	Unlisted molecular pathology procedure	Occasionally used historically when no PLA code existed; for PLA-coded test `0142U` is reported instead.
`87077`	Culture, blood, aerobic and anaerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification	Provides broader culture coverage alongside the rapid gram-negative panel when anaerobic pathogens are suspected.

CPT 0001U: PreciseType HEA Multiplex Erythrocyte Antigen Assay

CPT-0002U-POLYPDX-URINE-METABOLOMIC-ASSAY-ADENOMATOUS-POLYP-RISK

CPT 0002U: Urine Metabolomic Polyp Risk Assay (PolypDX™)

CPT-0003U-OVAR-A-NEXT-GENERATION-OVARIAN-CANCER-RISK-ASSAY

CPT 0003U: Overa™ (OVA1 Next Generation) Ovarian Cancer Risk Assay

CPT-0005U-PROSTATE-EXOSOMEDX-INTELLISCORE-GENE-EXPRESSION-URINE-TEST

CPT 0005U: ExosomeDx Prostate (IntelliScore) Urine Gene Expression Risk Test

CPT-0007U-TOXPROTECT-URINE-DRUG-SCREEN-WITH-DNA-AUTHENTICATION

CPT 0007U: ToxProtect Urine Drug Screen with DNA Authentication

CPT-0008U-H-PYLORI-ANTIBIOTIC-RESISTANCE-SEQUENCING-PANEL

CPT 0008U: H. pylori Antibiotic Resistance Panel, Gene Sequence Analysis

CPT-0009U-DEPARRAY-HER2-FISH-TUMOR-CELL-ISOLATION

CPT 0009U: DEPArray HER2 Tumor‑Cell Isolation with FISH Analysis

CPT-0010U-BACTERIAL-TYPING-WHOLE-GENOME-SEQUENCING-MAYO-CLINIC

CPT 0010U: Bacterial Typing by Whole Genome Sequencing, Mayo Clinic

CPT-0011U-CORDANT-CORE-ALGORITHMIC-ORAL-FLUID-DRUG-TEST

CPT 0011U: Cordant CORE™ Oral Fluid Drug Test with Algorithmic Steady‑State Comparison

CPT-0016U-BCR-ABL1-MAJOR-MINOR-FUSION-TRANSCRIPT-TESTING

CPT 0016U: BCR–ABL1 Major and Minor Breakpoint Fusion Transcript Testing

Showing 1–10 of 536

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

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Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Modifier	Description	When to Use
`00`	No modifier — full global service	Use when no modifier is applicable and the service is reported normally.
`22`	Increased procedural services	Use when the laboratory documents substantial additional work or complexity beyond the typical test (rare for PLA tests).
`26`	Professional component	Use when only the professional interpretation/component is billed separately by a physician or qualified practitioner.
`52`	Reduced services	Use when the test is partially reduced or not completed as originally intended.
`53`	Discontinued procedure	Use if testing was started but discontinued for reason unrelated to patient’s condition.
`62`	Two surgeons — concurrent modifiers for surgical context	Uncommon for this lab test; used only if related to bundled surgical billing requiring attribution.
`78`	Return to operating room for a related procedure	Not typically applicable but listed for completeness when lab testing follows reoperation billing events.
`80`	Assistant surgeon	Not typically applicable; used if billing context requires reporting of assistant involvement in a related surgical episode.
`82`	Assistant surgeon (when qualified resident not available)	Same limited relevance as `80` — included when applicable to associated operative services.
`QK`	Medical direction of two, three, or four concurrent anesthesia procedures	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included when anesthesia-related billing occurs in the same encounter.
`QX`	CRNA service with medical direction	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included for completeness in perioperative encounters.
`QY`	Medical direction of one CRNA by an anesthesiologist	Not directly applicable to the lab test; included for perioperative billing context.
`TC`	Technical component	Use when only the technical component (laboratory instrumentation and processing) is billed by the performing laboratory separate from professional interpretation.
`AD`	Medical team participation in global surgical package	Rarely applicable; used if lab testing is part of an episode where an additional medical team is involved.

Taxonomy Code	Specialty	Notes
208000000X	Pathology	Clinical laboratory/pathology oversight, interpretation and reporting of microbiology results.
207Q00000X	Infectious Disease	Clinicians who order and act on rapid blood culture identification for antimicrobial management.
207L00000X	Hospitalist	Inpatient physicians ordering tests and managing sepsis/bacteremia patients.
333600000X	Clinical Laboratory Technologist/Technician	Laboratory professionals performing the ePlex assay and processing specimens.
363L00000X	Microbiology Technician	Specialists in bacteriology and molecular detection performing and validating the test.

Related Diagnoses

ICD-10 Code	Description	Clinical Relevance
`A41.9`	Sepsis, unspecified organism	Common presenting diagnosis prompting rapid blood-culture-based molecular testing to identify causative gram-negative pathogens.
`A41.5`	Sepsis due to other Gram-negative organisms	Directly relevant — indicates gram-negative sepsis where the ePlex gram–negative panel assists in rapid identification.
`R65.20`	Severe sepsis without septic shock	Indicates systemic inflammatory response and organ dysfunction where rapid pathogen ID influences management.
`R65.21`	Severe sepsis with septic shock	High-acuity scenario requiring rapid detection of organisms and resistance markers to guide therapy.
`N39.0`	Urinary tract infection, site not specified	UTI can be a source of gram-negative bacteremia leading to positive blood cultures tested with this panel.
`K65.0`	Acute peritonitis	Intra-abdominal infections are common sources of gram-negative bacteremia prompting this test.
`J18.9`	Pneumonia, unspecified organism	Pneumonia can lead to bacteremia with gram-negative organisms; rapid ID supports targeted therapy.

Related CPT Codes

CPT Code	Description	Relationship to This Procedure
`87070`	Culture, blood, aerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification of aerobic organisms	Performed prior to or alongside molecular testing; provides organism isolation and susceptibility workflow.
`87076`	Culture, blood, aerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification of organisms; any source, multiple pathogens (automated)	Alternate culture code used in bacteremia workups; complements rapid PLA testing by providing isolates for full susceptibility.
`87471`	Infectious agent detection by nucleic acid (DNA or RNA); Chlamydia trachomatis, amplified probe technique	Example molecular amplification CPT; included to represent molecular nucleic acid amplification methodology in lab workflows (different analyte).
`87499`	Unlisted molecular pathology procedure	Occasionally used historically when no PLA code existed; for PLA-coded test `0142U` is reported instead.
`87077`	Culture, blood, aerobic and anaerobic, with isolation and presumptive identification	Provides broader culture coverage alongside the rapid gram-negative panel when anaerobic pathogens are suspected.

CPT 0001U: PreciseType HEA Multiplex Erythrocyte Antigen Assay

CPT-0002U-POLYPDX-URINE-METABOLOMIC-ASSAY-ADENOMATOUS-POLYP-RISK

CPT 0002U: Urine Metabolomic Polyp Risk Assay (PolypDX™)

CPT-0003U-OVAR-A-NEXT-GENERATION-OVARIAN-CANCER-RISK-ASSAY

CPT 0003U: Overa™ (OVA1 Next Generation) Ovarian Cancer Risk Assay

CPT-0005U-PROSTATE-EXOSOMEDX-INTELLISCORE-GENE-EXPRESSION-URINE-TEST

CPT 0005U: ExosomeDx Prostate (IntelliScore) Urine Gene Expression Risk Test

CPT-0007U-TOXPROTECT-URINE-DRUG-SCREEN-WITH-DNA-AUTHENTICATION

CPT 0007U: ToxProtect Urine Drug Screen with DNA Authentication

CPT-0008U-H-PYLORI-ANTIBIOTIC-RESISTANCE-SEQUENCING-PANEL

CPT 0008U: H. pylori Antibiotic Resistance Panel, Gene Sequence Analysis

CPT-0009U-DEPARRAY-HER2-FISH-TUMOR-CELL-ISOLATION

CPT 0009U: DEPArray HER2 Tumor‑Cell Isolation with FISH Analysis

CPT-0010U-BACTERIAL-TYPING-WHOLE-GENOME-SEQUENCING-MAYO-CLINIC

CPT 0010U: Bacterial Typing by Whole Genome Sequencing, Mayo Clinic

CPT-0011U-CORDANT-CORE-ALGORITHMIC-ORAL-FLUID-DRUG-TEST

CPT 0011U: Cordant CORE™ Oral Fluid Drug Test with Algorithmic Steady‑State Comparison

CPT-0016U-BCR-ABL1-MAJOR-MINOR-FUSION-TRANSCRIPT-TESTING

CPT 0016U: BCR–ABL1 Major and Minor Breakpoint Fusion Transcript Testing

Showing 1–10 of 536

Frequently Asked Questions

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

Published by

Trek Health powers OpenPayer with a leading commercial payer intelligence platform, seamlessly converting fragmented payer data into actionable insights for provider organizations.

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CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

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Billing Code Overview

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CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

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Billing Code Overview

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

References

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

References

CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

Sign up for cpt 0142U policy alerts

Billing Code Overview

CPT 0142U: ePlex BCID Gram–Negative Panel for Positive Blood Cultures

Sign up for cpt 0142U policy alerts

Billing Code Overview

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

What does CPT 0142U represent and when is it used?

Where and in what clinical scenarios is 0142U typically performed?

How does 0142U relate to traditional blood culture CPT codes and other molecular codes?

Which payers are noted as covering 0142U and does the page list reimbursement amounts?

Which billing modifiers are described for use with 0142U and which are commonly applicable?

References

Clinical & Coding Specifications

Clinical Context

Coding Specifications

Related Diagnoses

Related CPT Codes

Related Codes

What does CPT 0142U represent and when is it used?

Where and in what clinical scenarios is 0142U typically performed?

How does 0142U relate to traditional blood culture CPT codes and other molecular codes?

Which payers are noted as covering 0142U and does the page list reimbursement amounts?

Which billing modifiers are described for use with 0142U and which are commonly applicable?

References