CPT code 90834: Psychotherapy session, 45 minutes, without E/M2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Washington, DC area

In Washington, DC area, Medicare pays $123.52 for 90834 in the office and $97.56 when it’s performed in a hospital or facility.

Check a contract rate as a % of Medicare · 90834 nationwide

Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.

What 90834 covers

This service is an individual psychotherapy session in which a clinician uses techniques such as cognitive behavioral therapy, supportive therapy, or insight-oriented work to treat a mental health or substance use condition. The patient participates for all or part of the session; a family member or caregiver may join. Clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and Medicare-enrolled marriage and family therapists or mental health counselors provide it in offices, outpatient clinics, and eligible telehealth encounters.

Select 90834 using psychotherapy time: 38 through 52 minutes. Use 90832 for 16 through 37 minutes and 90837 for 53 minutes or more. Document total psychotherapy minutes or start and stop times, the therapeutic approach, clinical focus, patient response, and progress toward treatment goals. Exclude time spent on E/M activities or testing. If the same clinician performs a separately identifiable E/M service with psychotherapy, report the appropriate psychotherapy add-on instead; for 38 through 52 minutes, that is 90836. Interactive complexity add-on 90785 may accompany 90834 when its qualifying communication factors are documented.

This summary was written with AI assistance from CMS physician fee schedule data and checked against the CMS billing rules shown here. Rates on this page come directly from CMS files.

How Washington, DC area compares for 90834

Across 109 of 109 payment localities, the office rate for 90834 runs from $109.66 in Arkansas to $158.15 in Alaska. Washington, DC area pays $123.52. The RVUs are the same everywhere; the geographic indexes change the dollars.

Every other payment area

90834 rates by state

Office rate range in each state. Select a state to see its payment localities.

See 90834 in every payment locality

How the 90834 rate is calculated

Each of 90834’s three RVUs is multiplied by a geographic index (GPCI) for the payment locality, added up, and multiplied by the conversion factor. Drag the indexes or enter a ZIP to see what moves the rate.

Payment rules and modifiers for 90834

90834 has no global surgery period, no multiple-procedure, bilateral or assistant-at-surgery adjustment, and no professional/technical split. What changes the payment is where the service happens: the place of service on the claim decides whether Medicare pays the office or the facility rate.

90834 compared with similar codes

Same family in Washington, DC area

How to choose

90837Psychotherapy60 minutes, no E/M

Both are individual psychotherapy codes without E/M performed with the therapy. Use 90834 for 38 to 52 minutes; use 90837 once psychotherapy time reaches 53 minutes.

90836PsychotherapyWith E/M, 38–52 minutes

90836 is a psychotherapy add-on for 38 to 52 minutes when the same clinician performs a separately identifiable E/M service with the therapy. Report 90834 when that clinician provides psychotherapy without E/M.

90832Psychotherapy session30 minutes, without E/M

90832 covers 16 to 37 minutes of psychotherapy. Use 90834 when documented psychotherapy time reaches 38 through 52 minutes.

90847Family therapyPatient present, 50 minutes

90847 is family psychotherapy focused on family interactions, with the patient present. Individual-focused therapy remains 90834 when a family member joins the patient's session.

Codes related to 90834

Related codes aren’t interchangeable: bill the code that matches the service performed.

How 90834 has changed in Washington, DC area

Price 90834 for an earlier date of service

Where the Washington, DC area rate applies

Washington, DC area is a Medicare payment area, not a city. Our Census mapping connects it to 1 cities and communities in District of Columbia. Some span more than one payment area; confirm with the service ZIP.

• Washington

Browse all communities in District of Columbia

Where these rates come from

FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indexes and the conversion factor. Services without a published rate are labeled, never given a made-up amount. Amounts are Medicare allowed amounts before claim adjustments: not a patient’s bill or a commercial rate.

CMS RVU26D · effective Oct 1, 2026 through the day before Jan 1, 2027

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates