CPT 64633: Destruction of Single Cervical or Thoracic Facet Joint Nerve
Medicare pays $477 and commercial payers pay $730 on average nationally for this procedure.
CPT code 64633 describes destruction of a single cervical or thoracic facet joint nerve using a neurolytic agent (thermal, electrical, or chemical) performed with imaging guidance (fluoroscopy or CT); this is a minimally invasive spinal pain procedure typically performed as an image-guided interventional pain procedure in an outpatient ambulatory surgery center or hospital setting for targeted facet denervation to treat facet-mediated axial neck or upper back pain.
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.
Customize your policy alerts
Sign up for cpt 64633 policy alerts
Get alerted when payer policies referencing 64633 are released or updated.
Monitor payer policy activity
National Reimbursement Benchmarks
Commercial averages sit meaningfully above Medicare on CPT 64633: Blue Cross Blue Shield’s mean of $903.30 and BUCA’s mean of $730.40 both exceed Medicare’s mean of $476.90, with Blue Cross Blue Shield leading the commercial side. Cigna ($531.30), UnitedHealth Group ($638.20), and Aetna ($330.10) fall between those points, indicating a broad commercial-to-Medicare gap rather than a tight clustering around the Medicare average.
Dispersion measured as the interquartile range (P75–P25) varies notably by payer. Blue Cross Blue Shield shows the widest IQR at $740.40 (P75 $1,226.40 − P25 $486.60), followed by BUCA at $554.40 (P75 $976.40 − P25 $402.00) and UnitedHealth Group at $404.60 (P75 $803.50 − P25 $395.90). The tightest IQR is Aetna at $274.00 (P75 $452.00 − P25 $168.00), with Cigna’s IQR at $375.00 (P75 $673.80 − P25 $303.80).