CPT 01968: Anesthesia for Cesarean Delivery After Neuraxial Anesthetic
Commercial payers pay $143 on average nationally for this procedure.
CPT code 01968 describes anesthesia services provided for a patient undergoing a cesarean delivery after administration of a neuraxial anesthetic; this represents an intraoperative anesthesia service typically delivered in an operating room or labor and delivery suite for cesarean section procedures and is used to report the anesthesiologist’s or CRNA’s care during the surgical delivery following neuraxial blockade.
For related coverage guidance, see recent payer policy updates: Intravenous Anesthetics for the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Psychiatric or Substance Use Disorders, Intravenous Anesthetics for the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Psychiatric or Substance Use Disorders, Intravenous Anesthetics for the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Psychiatric or Substance Use Disorders.
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National Reimbursement Benchmarks
Commercial reimbursements for CPT 01968 center around BUCA’s average commercial rate of $142.80, with notable variation across national payers. Blue Cross Blue Shield and Cigna show mid-to-high centric distributions (medians $103.70 and $136.50 respectively) while Aetna and Cigna include higher upper tails (Aetna max $667, Cigna max $500). UnitedHealth Group is concentrated at lower absolute levels (median $65) compared with others.
Rate dispersion (P75 minus P25) highlights which payers are tight or wide: Aetna’s dispersion is $238.30 (P75 $398.6 minus P25 $160.7), Cigna’s is $118.9 (P75 $218.9 minus P25 $110.0), Blue Cross Blue Shield’s is $44.1 (P75 $132.8 minus P25 $86.7), BUCA’s is $89.01 (P75 $183.1 minus P25 $97.09), and UnitedHealth Group’s is $30.59 (P75 $82.6 minus P25 $52.0). Aetna exhibits the widest spread and UnitedHealth Group the tightest.