Blue Cross Blue Shield · Arkansas · commercial in-network
Blue Cross Blue Shield negotiated rates in Arkansas
How Blue Cross Blue Shield's Arkansas rates compare with the other three national payers, across the procedures that matter most to high-revenue specialties.
Blue Cross Blue Shield in Arkansas at a glance
Across 117 procedure codes for 8 specialties
Rate index vs state market
80
20% below the Arkansas median
Rank in state
4 of 4
UHC 111 · Cigna 100 · Aetna 86 · BCBS 80
vs own national
80
BCBS's level vs its national median
Codes where highest
4%
of 117 codes
What the data shows
Generated from Arkansas and Blue Cross Blue Shield data only
1
Blue Cross Blue Shield ranks 4th of 4 payers in Arkansas with a rate index of 80 (100 = the Arkansas market median), across 117 procedure codes.
2
Blue Cross Blue Shield has the highest median for only 4% of codes in Arkansas; UnitedHealthcare leads with an index of 111 in the files analyzed.
3
Blue Cross Blue Shield's Arkansas rates sit 20% below its own national level, the 43rd highest of its 51 states.
4
Largest premium over the Arkansas market: CPT 93298 (Rem interrog dev eval scrms) at 232% of market; largest discount: CPT 78452 (Ht muscle image spect mult) at 30%.
5
In Arkansas, BCBS rates come from 37 licensee file sets; the largest is Community Insurance Company (86 sampled providers).
How the four payers compare in Arkansas
Rate index: 100 = the state four-payer median for the same codes
| Payer | Index | Rank | Level | Highest on | Providers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UnitedHealthcare | 111 | 1 | 72% | 680 | |
| Cigna | 100 | 2 | 17% | 717 | |
| Aetna | 86 | 3 | 9% | 549 | |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield | 80 | 4 | 4% | 181 |
Where Blue Cross Blue Shield pays most and least against the Arkansas market
Codes with the largest gap to the state median
Highest above market
| Code | BCBS | Market | Gap | Prov. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 93298 Rem interrog dev eval scrms | $98 | $42 | +132% | 24 |
| 93297 Rem interrog dev eval icpms | $60 | $44 | +38% | 24 |
| 27447 Total knee arthroplasty | $2,443 | $2,154 | +14% | 16 |
| 99490 Chrnc care mgmt staff 1st 20 | $51 | $45 | +13% | 68 |
| 99495 Transj care mgmt mod f2f 14d | $191 | $171 | +12% | 23 |
| 27130 Total hip arthroplasty | $2,367 | $2,118 | +12% | 16 |
| 99214 Office o/p est mod 30 min | $118 | $106 | +11% | 137 |
| 88305 Tissue exam by pathologist | $74 | $67 | +11% | 18 |
Furthest below market
| Code | BCBS | Market | Gap | Prov. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78452 Ht muscle image spect mult | $176 | $594 | -70% | 45 |
| 93306 Tte w/doppler complete | $135 | $300 | -55% | 45 |
| 93458 L hrt artery/ventricle angio | $792 | $1,428 | -44% | 23 |
| 75574 Ct angio hrt w/3d image | $281 | $500 | -44% | 23 |
| 93308 Tte f-up or lmtd | $85 | $150 | -43% | 23 |
| 93312 Echo transesophageal | $229 | $374 | -39% | 23 |
| 70551 Mri brain stem w/o dye | $210 | $340 | -38% | 32 |
| 74183 Mri abd w/o cntr flwd cntr | $372 | $596 | -38% | 32 |
Where Blue Cross Blue Shield pays above and below its national level
Index vs the payer's own national median (100 = national)
Highest states
| State | Index | Prov. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 243 | 290 | |
| Wisconsin | 192 | 733 | |
| Minnesota | 171 | 671 | |
| North Dakota | 148 | 329 | |
| Wyoming | 145 | 256 |
Lowest states
| State | Index | Prov. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 63 | 758 | |
| Arizona | 66 | 479 | |
| Texas | 69 | 1,003 | |
| District of Columbia | 69 | 484 | |
| New Mexico | 74 | 562 |
Blue Cross Blue Shield licensees in Arkansas
File sets contributing rates; licensees are different companies
| Licensee file set | Sampled providers |
|---|---|
| Community Insurance Company | 86 |
| HealthKeepers, Inc. | 70 |
| BCBS TX | 45 |
| BCBS OK | 20 |
| Matthew Thornton Health Plan, Inc. | 19 |
| Healthy Alliance Life Insurance Company | 12 |
| BCBS NC | 9 |
| Anthem (Elevance) | 8 |
| BCBS TN | 8 |
| BCBS IL | 6 |
| BCBS KS | 5 |
| BCBS MI | 5 |
| HMO Colorado, Inc. | 5 |
| BCBS Kansas City | 4 |
| BS CA | 3 |
| Wellmark | 3 |
| BCBS MS | 3 |
| Horizon Healthcare of New Jersey | 3 |
| BCBS AL | 3 |
| Regence | 3 |
| BCBS NJ (Horizon) | 3 |
| BCBS MN | 3 |
| Carefirst BCBS | 3 |
| Blue Shield of California Life & Health Insurance Company | 3 |
| BCBS RI | 2 |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wyoming | 2 |
| Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts HMO Blue, Inc. | 2 |
| Excellus BCBS | 2 |
| BCBS MA | 2 |
| Capital BlueCross | 2 |
| Capital BC | 2 |
| BlueAdvantage Administrators of Arkansas | 1 |
| BCBS AZ | 1 |
| Premera | 1 |
| Compcare Health Services Insurance Corporation | 1 |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota | 1 |
| Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska | 1 |
Frequently asked questions
Does Blue Cross Blue Shield pay more or less than the other payers in Arkansas?
Blue Cross Blue Shield ranks 4th of 4 in Arkansas with an index of 80. It is highest on 4% of codes.
Are Blue Cross Blue Shield's Arkansas rates above or below its national level?
About 20% below.
Which procedure does Blue Cross Blue Shield pay most above market in Arkansas?
CPT 93298 (Rem interrog dev eval scrms), at 232% of the Arkansas median.
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.
Is your Blue Cross Blue Shield contract at market in Arkansas?
Compare your negotiated rates for these codes with Arkansas medians for each payer.