CPT 96139: Technician Neuropsychological Testing and Scoring, Additional 30 Minutes
Medicare pays $37 and commercial payers pay $55 on average nationally for this procedure.
CPT code 96139 describes technician-administered psychological or neuropsychological testing and scoring for two or more tests that requires an additional 30 minutes beyond the initial 30 minutes; this service type is psychological/neuropsychological test administration and scoring by a technician and the typical site of service is an outpatient behavioral health or neuropsychology clinic where extended technician testing time is needed.
For related coverage guidance, see recent payer policy updates: Lumbar Microdiscectomy, Artificial Cervical Intervertebral Disc, Lumbar Decompression.
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National Reimbursement Benchmarks
Across national benchmarks for CPT 96139, Medicare’s mean of $37.1 sits well below BUCA’s average commercial mean of $54.8, indicating commercial plans generally reimburse substantially more than Medicare for this code. The midpoint measures also reflect this gap: BUCA’s 50th percentile is $43.9 versus Medicare’s median of $36, reinforcing that average commercial payment levels are meaningfully higher than Medicare in most localities.
Dispersion varies notably by payer. Calculated interquartile ranges (P75–P25) are tightest for Blue Cross Blue Shield at $16.1 and Aetna at $16.0, indicating more concentrated commercial pricing, while UnitedHealth Group shows the widest spread at $35.2 and Cigna follows with $24.6, suggesting greater variability across markets and contracts for those payers.