Billing code 94619: Exercise challengeMedicare rate & RVUs

Medicare pays $66.80 for 94619 nationally in the office. Local office rates run $59.30–$90.10.

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

What 94619 covers

This test evaluates whether exertion triggers airway narrowing, often in a patient with cough, wheezing, or breathlessness during or after exercise. The patient exercises, commonly on a treadmill or cycle, while pulmonary function staff obtain spirometry before and after exertion. A physician or qualified clinician interprets the airflow changes in the context of the test and symptoms. It is typically performed in a pulmonary function laboratory or another setting equipped for exercise testing and spirometry.

Report 94619 for the bronchospasm challenge without ECG recording, rather than a general exercise-capacity assessment. Documentation should identify the clinical reason for testing, exercise protocol, baseline and post-exercise spirometry findings, and interpretation. The pre- and post-exercise measurements are part of the challenge, not separate services when they represent the work of this test. Medicare recognizes professional and technical components: use modifier 26 for interpretation only, modifier TC for equipment and staff only, or report without a component modifier for the global service.

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 94619 pays more and less

The same RVUs, adjusted for each area’s costs. Open a locality for its calculation, history and nearby areas.

109 of 109 payment localities

94619 rates by state

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

How the 94619 rate is calculated

Each of 94619’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 94619

The CMS indicators that decide how 94619 is paid alongside other services.

What modifiers do to the payment

When to use modifier 26

94619 compared with similar codes

How to choose

94617Exercise bronchospasm test

Both assess exercise-related bronchospasm with spirometry before and after exertion. Choose 94617 when ECG recording is performed; use 94619 when it is not.

94618Pulmonary stress test

94618 is pulmonary stress testing for exercise-related functional assessment, such as a walk test. 94619 is an exercise challenge directed at detecting bronchospasm.

94621Exercise test

94621 is a broader cardiopulmonary exercise assessment. 94619 focuses on whether exercise provokes bronchospasm and includes pre- and post-exercise spirometry.

94010Spirometry

94010 reports spirometry without an exercise challenge. Use 94619 when exertion is used to evaluate suspected exercise-induced airway narrowing.

Codes related to 94619

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

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