CPT 81440: Nuclear-Encoded Mitochondrial Gene Panel
Commercial payers pay $3230 on average nationally for this procedure.
CPT code 81440 describes a genomic sequencing panel performed by a laboratory analyst to evaluate a patient specimen for genetic sequences of at least 100 mitochondrial-related genes encoded in the nuclear genome, including a set of 19 genes associated with nerve or muscle pathology; this is a molecular diagnostic genomic sequencing procedure typically billed as a diagnostic genetic test and most often performed in clinical molecular genetics laboratories or specialty reference labs with the specimen collected in ambulatory clinic or hospital outpatient settings.
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National Reimbursement Benchmarks
National commercial rates for CPT 81440 center on an average commercial benchmark (BUCA) of $3,230.30, with most commercial payers clustered around the mid-thousands. Blue Cross Blue Shield posts a high median near $3,261.60 and a mean of $3,760.20, while Cigna and UnitedHealth Group show mean rates of $3,231.70 and $2,650.20 respectively. Aetna’s mean of $1,689.50 sits well below BUCA and the other large carriers, indicating a lower-paying tail among commercial contracts for this code.
Dispersion (P75 minus P25) highlights variability: Blue Cross Blue Shield’s interquartile range is $1,214.60 ($3,855.90 - $2,641.30), Cigna’s is $2,604.00 ($4,304.20 - $1,700.20), UnitedHealth Group’s is $1,927.90 ($3,324.00 - $1,396.10), BUCA’s is $1,578.50 ($3,673.00 - $2,094.50), and Aetna’s is $1,659.00 ($2,659.00 - $1,000.00). Cigna shows the widest IQR, indicating the greatest middle-range variability, while Blue Cross Blue Shield is the tightest among the named payers.