Code 97140. Medicare covered 29,275,217 of these. Here is what providers billed and what Medicare allowed, state by state.
Providers in New Jersey billed the most for this, at $98.28. In Puerto Rico the average was $29.58. Same procedure code, same programme.
These are Medicare figures. The billed column is what providers asked for. The allowed column is what Medicare agreed to pay. Neither is what an uninsured patient gets charged, and neither is what a private insurer negotiates.
The gap between the two columns is the point. A hospital billing three times what Medicare allows tells you the billed number was never a price. It was an opening position.
| State | Billed | Medicare allowed | Gap | Services |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | $98.28 | $21.94 | 4.5x | 2,133,753 |
| Wisconsin | $92.91 | $19.95 | 4.7x | 298,095 |
| Alaska | $87.78 | $26.64 | 3.3x | 73,349 |
| Delaware | $79.47 | $20.16 | 3.9x | 191,686 |
| Minnesota | $78.11 | $20.46 | 3.8x | 220,209 |
| New York | $77.89 | $22.14 | 3.5x | 2,919,929 |
| Armed Forces Pacific | $74.91 | $20.33 | 3.7x | 390 |
| Illinois | $74.09 | $20.38 | 3.6x | 1,041,876 |
| Michigan | $72.95 | $19.98 | 3.7x | 836,651 |
| Rhode Island | $72.65 | $20.72 | 3.5x | 146,216 |
| Wyoming | $72.04 | $20.04 | 3.6x | 234,532 |
| Nevada | $70.47 | $20.14 | 3.5x | 297,948 |
| Indiana | $69.36 | $19.35 | 3.6x | 419,673 |
| Connecticut | $68.94 | $21.25 | 3.2x | 352,025 |
| Virginia | $67.68 | $20.48 | 3.3x | 755,584 |
| North Dakota | $67.60 | $20.80 | 3.3x | 73,858 |
| Colorado | $67.41 | $20.66 | 3.3x | 702,529 |
| Massachusetts | $67.39 | $21.14 | 3.2x | 756,698 |
| Maine | $66.96 | $20.26 | 3.3x | 118,938 |
| District of Columbia | $66.81 | $22.03 | 3.0x | 44,363 |
| Florida | $66.48 | $19.91 | 3.3x | 1,791,379 |
| Missouri | $66.29 | $19.54 | 3.4x | 286,570 |
| New Hampshire | $65.80 | $20.40 | 3.2x | 160,580 |
| Arizona | $65.78 | $19.93 | 3.3x | 934,260 |
| Foreign Country | $65.66 | $20.22 | 3.2x | 469 |
| Oregon | $65.63 | $20.28 | 3.2x | 298,037 |
| Iowa | $64.84 | $19.45 | 3.3x | 306,871 |
| Maryland | $64.06 | $20.96 | 3.1x | 910,000 |
| South Dakota | $63.68 | $20.23 | 3.1x | 96,599 |
| Ohio | $63.10 | $19.26 | 3.3x | 416,245 |
| Texas | $62.85 | $19.77 | 3.2x | 1,037,950 |
| Virgin Islands | $62.65 | $20.47 | 3.1x | 4,593 |
| Kentucky | $61.71 | $19.13 | 3.2x | 297,688 |
| Washington | $61.66 | $20.74 | 3.0x | 613,973 |
| Vermont | $61.62 | $20.57 | 3.0x | 77,874 |
| Nebraska | $61.35 | $19.52 | 3.1x | 235,443 |
| North Carolina | $60.70 | $19.70 | 3.1x | 728,349 |
| Oklahoma | $60.60 | $18.96 | 3.2x | 279,606 |
| California | $60.32 | $21.82 | 2.8x | 3,766,779 |
| Pennsylvania | $60.17 | $20.33 | 3.0x | 1,266,368 |
| Georgia | $59.42 | $19.87 | 3.0x | 581,457 |
| Mississippi | $59.14 | $19.09 | 3.1x | 222,126 |
| Armed Forces Central/South America | $59.00 | $19.84 | 3.0x | 585 |
| South Carolina | $58.03 | $19.44 | 3.0x | 531,792 |
| West Virginia | $56.44 | $18.88 | 3.0x | 111,523 |
| New Mexico | $55.95 | $19.59 | 2.9x | 121,671 |
| Tennessee | $55.60 | $19.30 | 2.9x | 615,803 |
| Kansas | $55.45 | $19.23 | 2.9x | 214,428 |
| Montana | $55.30 | $20.36 | 2.7x | 149,937 |
| Louisiana | $54.68 | $19.39 | 2.8x | 437,921 |
| Utah | $54.15 | $19.69 | 2.7x | 246,586 |
| Arkansas | $53.11 | $18.97 | 2.8x | 186,503 |
| Hawaii | $50.67 | $20.92 | 2.4x | 126,904 |
| Alabama | $50.51 | $18.77 | 2.7x | 359,999 |
| Idaho | $49.36 | $19.35 | 2.6x | 231,344 |
| Guam | $48.54 | $21.49 | 2.3x | 1,452 |
| Unknown | $44.64 | $20.47 | 2.2x | 867 |
| Armed Forces Europe | $40.11 | $20.12 | 2.0x | 616 |
| Puerto Rico | $29.58 | $19.90 | 1.5x | 5,221 |
Source: CMS Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners, by Geography and Service. Weighted by service volume across places of service.