CPT 68761 · professional fee

Close tear duct opening (CPT 68761): negotiated rates by payer and state

What UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Cigna and Blue Cross Blue Shield pay for CPT 68761, from their published in-network rate files.

OphthalmologySnapshot Aug 2026Professional fee only

National summary

Commercial in-network, four payers combined, professional fee
Median rate
$164
P10 to P90: $114 to $322
vs Medicare
114%
non-facility rate $143.29
Payer spread
1.22×
UHC $186 vs Cigna $153
State spread
4.2×
AK $471 to FL $113
4,677 sampled providers6,433 TINs51 statesSample-based · how this is calculated

What the data shows

Generated from this code's own numbers
1

UnitedHealthcare has the highest median for CPT 68761 in the files analyzed, at $186, 22% above Cigna ($153), the lowest of the 4 payers shown.

2

The state spread is 4.2×: Alaska has the highest median at $471 and Florida the lowest at $113, a gap larger than the gap between the highest and lowest payer.

3

Commercial rates run 114% of the Medicare non-facility rate ($143.29), which ranks 173rd of 228 tracked codes by commercial-to-Medicare ratio.

4

Rates are tightest within Aetna (interquartile range $49) and widest within UnitedHealthcare ($121).

5

This is a top-16 code for ophthalmology by Medicare allowed dollars, so it carries real revenue weight for that specialty.

Rates by payer

Median of per-provider median rates, with interquartile range
PayerMedianP25P75vs nationalRankProvidersPosition
UnitedHealthcare$186$145$266+14%13,834
130% of Medicare
Blue Cross Blue Shield$163$127$224-1%23,488
114% of Medicare
Aetna$157$131$181-4%33,230
110% of Medicare
Cigna$153$121$213-7%43,783
107% of Medicare

Rate distribution

Box = P25 to P75, whiskers = P10 to P90, tick = median, dashed line = Medicare non-facility ($143.29)
$96$160$225$289$353$417UnitedHealthcareBlue Cross Blue ShieldAetnaCignaMedicare

Rates by state

Median across payers · 50 states with enough data
RankStateMedianvs nationalHighest payerLowest payerProvidersLevel
1Alaska$471+187%n/an/a24
2Wisconsin$282+72%BCBSAetna104
3Nebraska$274+67%UHCAetna71
4South Dakota$264+61%UHCBCBS39
5Iowa$254+55%UHCAetna93
6Oregon$252+54%UHCAetna100
7North Dakota$243+48%UHCAetna34
8Idaho$233+42%AetnaCigna57
9Massachusetts$232+41%UHCAetna118
10Connecticut$224+36%UHCAetna111
11Minnesota$223+36%BCBSAetna94
12Georgia$216+32%UHCBCBS114
13Vermont$207+26%UHCBCBS35
14Washington$199+21%UHCCigna120
15Mississippi$189+15%BCBSCigna103
16Hawaii$189+15%UHCCigna85
17Maine$184+12%UHCAetna64
18Montana$184+12%UHCBCBS36
19New Hampshire$183+11%UHCAetna56
20Rhode Island$181+10%CignaAetna62
21Colorado$177+8%UHCCigna104
22Illinois$174+6%UHCAetna111
23Kansas$172+5%UHCCigna106
24New Mexico$170+4%UHCBCBS74
25Tennessee$160-2%UHCCigna120
26Arkansas$159-3%UHCAetna92
27West Virginia$157-4%UHCBCBS78
28Louisiana$156-5%AetnaCigna109
29Michigan$156-5%UHCBCBS112
30New York$156-5%UHCCigna110
31Nevada$151-8%UHCBCBS112
32North Carolina$149-9%UHCAetna118
33Oklahoma$148-10%UHCAetna112
34Ohio$148-10%UHCBCBS111
35Utah$148-10%BCBSCigna116
36South Carolina$146-11%AetnaCigna103
37Kentucky$145-12%CignaBCBS112
38Texas$143-13%UHCCigna123
39District of Columbia$141-14%AetnaBCBS52
40Alabama$141-14%AetnaBCBS111
41Missouri$141-14%UHCCigna110
42Maryland$140-15%AetnaBCBS106
43Pennsylvania$140-15%UHCCigna117
44Virginia$133-19%AetnaCigna109
45New Jersey$131-20%AetnaCigna117
46Delaware$131-20%AetnaCigna47
47Indiana$131-20%UHCBCBS115
48California$130-21%UHCBCBS122
49Arizona$125-24%UHCBCBS109
50Florida$113-31%UHCCigna112

Frequently asked questions

Answers use this page's data
Which payer has the highest median rate for CPT 68761?

In the files we analyzed, UnitedHealthcare, at a median of $186 across 3,834 sampled providers. Cigna is lowest at $153, 22% lower than the highest.

How does the commercial rate compare with Medicare?

The national median is 114% of the 2026 Medicare non-facility rate of $143.29.

Which state has the highest median for CPT 68761?

Alaska has the highest median at $471; Florida has the lowest at $113.

Is this the surgeon, physician or facility payment?

These are professional (physician) fees only. Facility, device and implant payments are priced separately and are not included.

How current is this data?

It is the August 2026 snapshot of each payer's in-network rate file. Sources and filters are listed in the methodology below.

Methodology

How these numbers are calculated
  • Source: in-network negotiated-rate files published under the federal Transparency in Coverage rule, August 2026 snapshot: UnitedHealthcare Choice plans (74 files); Aetna commercial plans (70 files); Cigna national PPO (1 files); BCBS licensees' own-network files (5,387 files). Payer comparisons describe these files, not each payer's entire book of business.
  • Sample: rates come from a random sample of up to 150 providers per state and specialty. Counts on this page are sampled providers and TINs, not totals.
  • Which providers count: only providers in a specialty relevant to the code, because a rate in a payer file attaches to a provider group and is listed under every provider in that group.
  • Filters: fee-for-service, professional billing class, no modifier, negotiated or fee-schedule dollar rates. Rates outside 1% to 1,000% of the Medicare rate are excluded.
  • Statistic: one median rate per provider, then percentiles across providers. A cell is shown only with at least 15 sampled providers and 4 TINs.
  • Medicare benchmark: CY2026 national physician fee schedule, non-QPP conversion factor, unadjusted for locality. Where the non-facility rate is more than twice the facility rate (office rates that include device or supply cost), the facility rate is used so comparisons are like for like.

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