CPT 01967: Neuraxial Anesthesia for Planned Vaginal Delivery
Headline: CPT code 01967 covers neuraxial anesthesia for planned vaginal delivery; widely used in obstetric anesthesia practice. Lead: CPT code 01967 denotes neuraxial anesthesia services delivered for patients undergoing planned vaginal birth and represents a common, clinically important service within peripartum care.
CPT code 01967 defines the provision of neuraxial anesthesia (epidural or spinal techniques) for a planned vaginal delivery. This code matters nationally because neuraxial analgesia is a standard component of contemporary obstetric care, affecting resource use, anesthesia staffing, and payment policies across hospitals and birthing centers.
Key payers covered in this analysis include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, United Healthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find a concise overview of the clinical context for neuraxial anesthesia in labor, how 01967 relates to common obstetric scenarios, and links to closely related anesthesia codes used for intrapartum and cesarean care. The publication summarizes payer coverage considerations, common coding relationships, and practical billing context for claim processing and encounter documentation.
This national summary is intended for clinicians, coding and billing staff, and health policy analysts seeking a clear, focused reference on the purpose and clinical scope of CPT code 01967.
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Billing Code Overview
CPT code 01967 describes neuraxial anesthesia services provided for a patient undergoing a planned vaginal delivery. The service involves administration and management of neuraxial anesthesia techniques such as spinal or epidural anesthesia specifically for labor and planned vaginal birth.
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Service type: Neuraxial anesthesia for planned vaginal delivery
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Typical site of service: Hospital labor and delivery unit or birthing center
National Reimbursement Benchmarks
For CPT 01967 the average commercial benchmark (BUCA) sits at $115.30, providing a convenient midpoint for national comparisons across carriers. Blue Cross Blue Shield shows a relatively narrow interquartile spread (P75–P25 = $125.00 − $49.20 = $75.80), while UnitedHealth Group is the tightest among major carriers with an interquartile range of $80.90 − $52.00 = $28.90. Aetna and Cigna display wider dispersion, with Aetna’s IQR at $286.90 − $102.60 = $184.30 and Cigna’s at $160.00 − $75.60 = $84.40, indicating greater variability in contracted commercial rates for this code.
Looking at central tendency, Blue Cross Blue Shield and UnitedHealth Group cluster below the BUCA mean, with medians of $72.00 and $63.80 respectively, while Aetna and Cigna have higher medians of $164.30 and $111.00. The range between payers’ upper quartiles further highlights market fragmentation: Aetna’s P75 at $286.90 sits well above other carriers’ P75s (Cigna $160.00, Blue Cross Blue Shield $125.00, UnitedHealth Group $80.90), suggesting the potential for outlier high commercial rates at some contracts.