Blue Cross Blue Shield negotiated rates in Louisiana
How Blue Cross Blue Shield's Louisiana rates compare with the other three national payers, across the procedures that matter most to high-revenue specialties.
Blue Cross Blue Shield in Louisiana at a glance
What the data shows
Blue Cross Blue Shield ranks 4th of 4 payers in Louisiana with a rate index of 92 (100 = the Louisiana market median), across 130 procedure codes.
Blue Cross Blue Shield has the highest median for only 15% of codes in Louisiana; UnitedHealthcare leads with an index of 106 in the files analyzed.
Blue Cross Blue Shield's Louisiana rates sit 13% below its own national level, the 35th highest of its 51 states.
Largest premium over the Louisiana market: CPT 77080 (Dxa bone density axial) at 130% of market; largest discount: CPT 88313 (Special stains group 2) at 24%.
In Louisiana, BCBS rates come from 34 licensee file sets; the largest is Community Insurance Company (78 sampled providers).
How the four payers compare in Louisiana
| Payer | Index | Rank | Level | Highest on | Providers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UnitedHealthcare | 106 | 1 | 54% | 808 | |
| Aetna | 96 | 2 | 25% | 832 | |
| Cigna | 95 | 3 | 13% | 837 | |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield | 92 | 4 | 15% | 203 |
Where Blue Cross Blue Shield pays most and least against the Louisiana market
Highest above market
| Code | BCBS | Market | Gap | Prov. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77080 Dxa bone density axial | $67 | $52 | +30% | 49 |
| 73564 X-ray exam knee 4 or more | $63 | $49 | +29% | 15 |
| 73562 X-ray exam of knee 3 | $53 | $43 | +23% | 15 |
| 97110 Therapeutic exercises | $34 | $28 | +22% | 15 |
| 73560 X-ray exam of knee 1 or 2 | $45 | $37 | +22% | 15 |
| 73610 X-ray exam of ankle | $47 | $39 | +21% | 15 |
| 92012 Intrm oph exam est patient | $80 | $67 | +20% | 48 |
| 76700 Us exam abdom complete | $172 | $153 | +13% | 51 |
Furthest below market
| Code | BCBS | Market | Gap | Prov. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 88313 Special stains group 2 | $18 | $76 | -76% | 22 |
| 91110 Gi trc img intral esoph-ile | $404 | $1,055 | -62% | 23 |
| 88312 Special stains group 1 | $40 | $101 | -61% | 33 |
| 64566 Neuroeltrd stim post tibial | $41 | $63 | -35% | 22 |
| 78452 Ht muscle image spect mult | $350 | $539 | -35% | 22 |
| 45380 Colonoscopy and biopsy | $319 | $476 | -33% | 24 |
| 52000 Cystourethroscopy | $125 | $183 | -32% | 22 |
| 88305 Tissue exam by pathologist | $51 | $74 | -30% | 35 |
Where Blue Cross Blue Shield pays above and below its national level
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 Louisiana
| Licensee file set | Sampled providers |
|---|---|
| Community Insurance Company | 78 |
| BCBS TX | 64 |
| HealthKeepers, Inc. | 58 |
| BCBS MS | 35 |
| Anthem (Elevance) | 12 |
| Healthy Alliance Life Insurance Company | 9 |
| BCBS NC | 5 |
| Matthew Thornton Health Plan, Inc. | 5 |
| Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts HMO Blue, Inc. | 4 |
| BCBS MI | 4 |
| BCBS TN | 4 |
| HMO Colorado, Inc. | 4 |
| BCBS NM | 4 |
| BCBS MA | 3 |
| Blue Shield of California Life & Health Insurance Company | 3 |
| BCBS MN | 3 |
| BCBS AL | 3 |
| BS CA | 3 |
| BCBS IL | 3 |
| BCBS KS | 2 |
| Excellus BCBS | 2 |
| Wellmark | 2 |
| BCBS OK | 2 |
| Compcare Health Services Insurance Corporation | 1 |
| BCBS NJ (Horizon) | 1 |
| Carefirst BCBS | 1 |
| Premera | 1 |
| BCBS MT | 1 |
| BCBS RI | 1 |
| BCBS AZ | 1 |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota | 1 |
| BCBS HI | 1 |
| Regence | 1 |
| Horizon Healthcare of New Jersey | 1 |
Frequently asked questions
Does Blue Cross Blue Shield pay more or less than the other payers in Louisiana?
Blue Cross Blue Shield ranks 4th of 4 in Louisiana with an index of 92. It is highest on 15% of codes.
Are Blue Cross Blue Shield's Louisiana rates above or below its national level?
About 13% below.
Which procedure does Blue Cross Blue Shield pay most above market in Louisiana?
CPT 77080 (Dxa bone density axial), at 130% of the Louisiana median.
Methodology
- 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 Louisiana?
Compare your negotiated rates for these codes with Louisiana medians for each payer.