Summary & Overview
CPT 82030: Quantitative cAMP Assay on Plasma or Urine
CPT code 82030 denotes a quantitative cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) assay performed on plasma or urine. The assay aids in differentiating causes of altered calcium and vitamin D metabolism, notably in the workup of suspected hyperparathyroidism and vitamin D deficiency. As a specialized biochemical laboratory test, it is ordered by clinicians managing disorders of mineral metabolism, endocrinology teams, and inpatient services when biochemical clarification is required.
Key payers commonly involved in coverage for this service include Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Medicare. Readers will find clinical context for when the test is used, typical sites of service, and the operational implications for laboratories and ordering clinicians. The publication also covers billing considerations and common modifiers used with laboratory services (general overview), payment benchmarks and variability across major national payers, and policy developments that affect laboratory reimbursement and medical necessity review for specialized endocrine assays.
This summary targets laboratory managers, billing professionals, clinicians in endocrinology and primary care, and policy analysts seeking a concise national view of CPT code 82030, its clinical role, and payer coverage landscape.
Billing Code Overview
CPT code 82030 describes a quantitative cyclic adenosine, 5–monophosphate (cAMP) assay performed on plasma or urine. The test measures levels of cyclic adenosine monophosphate and is used in the differential diagnosis of hyperparathyroidism and vitamin D deficiency.
Service Type: Laboratory diagnostic test, quantitative biochemical assay
Typical Site of Service: Clinical laboratory or hospital laboratory; outpatient specimen collection (phlebotomy) or urine collection site
Data not available in the input.
Clinical & Coding Specifications
Clinical Context
A 52-year-old outpatient referred by an endocrinologist for biochemical evaluation of suspected primary hyperparathyroidism after routine labs show hypercalcemia and an elevated parathyroid hormone. The clinician orders a quantitative cyclic adenosine 5′-monophosphate (cAMP) assay on urine (or plasma if urine unavailable) to help differentiate parathyroid hormone–related hypercalcemia from other causes such as vitamin D deficiency or renal tubular disorders. The patient presents to the outpatient laboratory fasting, with a timed urine collection started in the morning and processed per laboratory protocol. The lab analyst performs 82030 (quantitative cAMP) with appropriate specimen handling, analytic run, and reporting of numerical results. Results are routed to the ordering endocrinologist who integrates them with serum calcium, serum PTH, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and renal function to support diagnosis and management planning. Typical sites of service include outpatient hospital laboratories, independent reference laboratories, and hospital-based clinical laboratories supporting ambulatory care and specialty clinics.
Coding Specifications
| Modifier | Description | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
00 | Unspecified or not applicable | Rarely used; indicates no specific modifier applies when billing system requires a placeholder |
11 | Professional component | When billing only the physician/provider professional interpretation component (rare for this lab test)
26 | Professional component | When separating physician interpretation or professional component from technical lab processing (if applicable)
TC | Technical component | When billing only the laboratory technical component (most common for 82030 when facility bills)
90 | Reference (outside) laboratory | When the performing laboratory is an outside reference laboratory contracted by the billing entity
91 | Repeat clinical diagnostic laboratory test (Note: not in provided list) | Data not available in the input
52 | Reduced services | When the test is partially performed or a reduced analytic panel is completed (rare)
59 | Distinct procedural service (Note: not in provided list) | Data not available in the input
90 duplicate handling note | See above | See above
| Taxonomy Code | Specialty | Notes |
|---|---|---|
0000A | Clinical Pathology / Laboratory Medicine | Clinical pathologists and clinical laboratory scientists typically oversee and interpret specialized biochemical assays |
0000B | Endocrinology | Endocrinologists commonly order cAMP testing during evaluation of hypercalcemia and disorders of calcium metabolism
0000C | Internal Medicine | Hospitalists and internists may order and coordinate diagnostic labs for metabolic bone and calcium disorders
0000D | Nephrology | Nephrologists evaluate renal causes of abnormal calcium and cAMP handling and may order this test
0000E | Pediatric Endocrinology | When performed in pediatric populations for relevant metabolic or endocrine disorders
Note: Taxonomy codes above are illustrative specialties commonly associated with this assay.
Related Diagnoses
| ICD-10 Code | Description | Clinical Relevance |
|---|---|---|
E21.0 | Primary hyperparathyroidism | Primary indication to evaluate parathyroid hormone activity and downstream cyclic AMP-mediated effects |
E83.51 | Vitamin D deficiency, unspecified | Vitamin D deficiency can cause alterations in calcium homeostasis and is part of the differential diagnosis
N25.81 | Hypercalcemia due to other causes | Investigated with cAMP testing to distinguish parathyroid-mediated versus other mechanisms
E83.5 | Disorders of calcium metabolism | Broad category encompassing conditions for which cAMP measurement can provide diagnostic information
N17.9 | Acute kidney failure, unspecified | Renal impairment alters calcium and cAMP handling; kidney disease is relevant when interpreting results
M80.00XA | Age-related osteoporosis with current pathological fracture, unspecified site, initial encounter | Bone disease context where calcium/PTH axis testing including cAMP may be part of evaluation
Related CPT Codes
| CPT Code | Description | Relationship to This Procedure |
|---|---|---|
80053 | Comprehensive metabolic panel | Common baseline serum panel performed alongside 82030 to evaluate electrolytes, renal function and calcium |
84100 | Parathyroid hormone (PTH), intact | Critical complementary test used to evaluate hyperparathyroidism when cAMP results are interpreted
82306 | Vitamin D; 25-hydroxy | Assesses vitamin D status which is important in differential diagnosis of abnormal calcium and cAMP findings
81000 | Urinalysis, by dipstick or microscopy | Initial urine assessment often performed with urine-based cAMP testing to ensure specimen quality
36415 | Collection of venous blood by venipuncture | Routine phlebotomy code for blood draws that supply serum or plasma when plasma cAMP is measured