HCPCS code A9500: Tc-99m sestamibi, per study dose2026 Medicare rate & RVUs in Missouri
Reports an intravenous technetium-99m sestamibi dose used for diagnostic nuclear imaging, commonly myocardial perfusion studies and parathyroid localization.
CMS doesn’t publish an office rate for A9500 in Missouri.
Medicare allowed amount for participating (non-QP) physicians, before deductible, coinsurance and claim adjustments. Not a patient’s bill or a hospital charge.
Your location
On this page 9 sections
What A9500 covers
Technetium-99m sestamibi is an intravenous diagnostic radiopharmaceutical used by nuclear medicine services. A common use is myocardial perfusion imaging at rest or with stress to evaluate cardiac blood flow; it is also used in parathyroid imaging to help localize abnormal parathyroid tissue. The imaging service may use a gamma camera or SPECT, while the radiopharmaceutical is prepared and administered as part of the nuclear medicine procedure.
A9500 identifies the radiopharmaceutical by study dose. Report the quantity in study doses, rather than by milligrams or millicuries. Under physician fee schedule status C, CMS publishes no national payment amount and the Medicare Administrative Contractor sets payment for the claim; the HCPCS pricing method likewise assigns payment to the contractor. Coverage is left to the Medicare contractor’s judgment. The code is commonly associated with myocardial perfusion imaging codes such as 78451 and 78452, but those codes describe the imaging service rather than the tracer.
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.
Where A9500 pays more and less in Missouri
The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.
| Payment locality | Office | Facility |
|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Kansas City, MO | Unavailable | Unavailable |
| Metropolitan St. Louis, MO | Unavailable | Unavailable |
| Rest of Missouri | Unavailable | Unavailable |
How the A9500 rate is calculated
Each of A9500’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.
How the rate is built · A9500
RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor
Work0.00
0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Practice expense0.00
0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Malpractice0.00
0.00 RVUs× 1.000 GPCI
Adjusted RVUs
0.0000
Conversion factor
$33.4009
Medicare rate
$0.00
Every GPCI starts at 1.000, the national rate. Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.
Payment rules and modifiers for A9500
A9500 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.
Place of service · A9500
Which rate does Medicare pay?
The POS code on the claim line (CMS-1500 box 24B).
POS 11 · non-facility rate · national
—
A9500 isn’t priced in this setting.
A9500 compared with similar codes
Compare codes · National
5 codes, side by side
How to choose
- A9502TetrofosminPer study dose
- A9502 is for technetium-99m tetrofosmin. Choose the code for the radiopharmaceutical actually furnished, not simply the cardiac imaging indication.
- A9505Thallium-201Per millicurie
- A9505 identifies thallium-201, another radiopharmaceutical used in myocardial perfusion imaging; A9500 is for technetium-99m sestamibi.
- 78451Cardiac SPECTSingle rest or stress study
- 78451 describes a single SPECT myocardial perfusion study. A9500 identifies the sestamibi dose, not the imaging service.
- 78452Nuclear stress testSPECT, multiple perfusion studies
- 78452 describes multiple SPECT myocardial perfusion studies at rest and/or stress. A9500 identifies the tracer used, not the number of imaging studies.
A9500 billing questions
When should A9500 be chosen instead of A9502?
Use A9500 for technetium-99m sestamibi. A9502 identifies technetium-99m tetrofosmin, a different radiopharmaceutical that may be used for myocardial perfusion imaging.
What does one unit of A9500 represent?
One unit represents a study dose. The code is not reported by milligram or millicurie.
Which imaging services are commonly reported with A9500?
For cardiac perfusion imaging, it is commonly associated with myocardial perfusion SPECT codes such as 78451 or 78452. The imaging code describes the scan; A9500 identifies the tracer.
Can A9500 be used for parathyroid imaging?
Yes. Technetium-99m sestamibi is also used for parathyroid imaging, including localization of abnormal parathyroid tissue.
How does Medicare determine payment and coverage for A9500?
Status C means CMS publishes no national physician fee schedule payment amount; the Medicare Administrative Contractor sets payment for the claim. The contractor also determines coverage.
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
Fee sheets · Coming soon
Put A9500 and the rest of your codes on one sheet
Your codes at your locality, with payer contracts beside Medicare.
Join the waitlist