CPT 01490: Anesthesia for Lower Leg Cast Application/Removal/Repair
Commercial payers pay $80 on average nationally for this procedure.
CPT code 01490 describes anesthesia services provided when a patient undergoes application, removal, or repair of a lower leg cast; this is an anesthesia service typically delivered in an operating room, procedure suite, or ambulatory surgical center during casting procedures on the lower leg (below the knee) and includes pre- and intra-procedure anesthetic management for the duration of the casting intervention.
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National Reimbursement Benchmarks
For CPT 01490 the national commercial landscape centers on BUCA’s average commercial rate of $80.30 as a practical midpoint; several large insurers sit both above and below that benchmark. Blue Cross Blue Shield’s spread between the 75th and 25th percentiles is $47.80, Cigna’s spread is the widest at $66.00, Aetna’s spread is $42.50, and UnitedHealth Group’s spread is the tightest at $29.00. These dispersion measures indicate Cigna and Blue Cross Blue Shield offer the greatest variability in reimbursed amounts, while UnitedHealth Group is comparatively consistent around its median.
When looking at mean and median tendencies, Cigna posts one of the higher mean rates at $105.00 with a median of $90.80, while UnitedHealth Group and Aetna cluster closer to BUCA’s average with means of $68.20 and $64.00 respectively. Blue Cross Blue Shield’s higher maximum ($222.00) and broader upper tail help explain its larger spread; Aetna and UnitedHealth Group show narrower upper tails and tighter central tendencies relative to that variability.