Billing code 95018: Drug allergy testingMedicare rate & RVUs

Reports immediate-reaction skin testing for suspected drug or biologic allergy using percutaneous and/or intracutaneous methods, with interpretation and a report.

CMS RVU26DEffective Oct 1, 2026109 payment localities87.9K Medicare services in 2024

Medicare pays $19.04 for 95018 nationally in the office and $6.01 in a hospital or facility. Local office rates run $16.90–$25.60.

Medicare rate · 95018

Drug allergy testing

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work RVUs
0.14
Total RVUs
0.57
Global days
XXX

National rate · 2026

$19.04

Office setting, before claim adjustments.

See every locality for 95018 → · Billed by an NP, PA or therapist? →

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

On this page 10 sections
  1. Medicare rate
  2. What 95018 covers
  3. By payment locality
  4. Rate map
  5. How it’s calculated
  6. Payment rules
  7. Similar codes
  8. Related codes
  9. Billing questions
  10. Sources

What 95018 covers

An allergist or other qualified clinician uses percutaneous and/or intracutaneous testing to evaluate a suspected immediate hypersensitivity reaction to a drug or biological product. Testing may be considered when a medication allergy history needs clinical evaluation, such as before deciding whether a patient can receive a needed antibiotic. The code covers a combination of the two skin-test methods; it is specific to drugs and biologicals rather than environmental allergen extracts.

Report the number of tests performed, and retain documentation identifying the agents and test methods, the results, and the clinician’s interpretation and report. Interpretation and reporting are part of the service, rather than separate services for the same tests. Under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, payment is based on work, practice expense, and malpractice relative value units; the practice-expense valuation differs between office and facility settings. The supplied CMS rules list no code-specific payment adjustments.

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 95018 pays more and less

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

109 payment localities

$16.90 to $25.60

$16.90$21.25$25.60
One dot per payment locality, office / nonfacility. Hover a dot to see the locality; select it to open that rate.

109 of 109 payment localities

95018 office and facility rates by payment locality
Payment localityOfficeFacility
Alabama$17.14$5.74
Alaska*$22.14$8.27
Arizona$18.56$5.93
Arkansas$16.90$5.71
Atlanta$19.34$6.11
Austin$19.82$6.04
Bakersfield$20.34$6.07
Baltimore/Surr. Cntys$20.22$6.24
Beaumont$17.75$5.90
Brazoria$18.88$5.97

95018 rates by state

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

Explore a state

Local rates. Clear comparisons.

Hover or focus a tile to see its rate range. Select it to open the state’s fee schedule.

$16.90

$22.96

Color shows the midpoint of each state’s locality range.

View every state and territory as a table
95018 office rate range by state
State / territoryOffice rate rangeLocalities
AK$22.141
AL$17.141
AR$16.901
AZ$18.561
CA$20.31–$25.6029
CO$19.921
CT$20.281
DC$21.831
DE$18.861
FL$18.59–$20.123
GA$17.59–$19.342
GU$20.821
HI$20.821
IA$17.641
ID$17.741
IL$18.01–$19.714
IN$17.841
KS$17.531
KY$17.451
LA$17.41–$18.262
MA$19.79–$21.912
MD$19.23–$21.833
ME$17.79–$18.792
MI$17.86–$18.782
MN$19.211
MO$17.09–$18.373
MS$17.001
MT$19.041
NC$17.981
ND$18.841
NE$17.751
NH$19.571
NJ$20.55–$21.602
NM$17.941
NV$19.001
NY$18.24–$22.285
OH$17.821
OK$17.461
OR$18.88–$20.582
PA$17.87–$19.762
PR$19.191
RI$19.551
SC$17.921
SD$18.821
TN$17.611
TX$17.75–$19.828
UT$18.161
VA$18.70–$21.832
VI$19.191
VT$18.731
WA$19.76–$22.402
WI$18.221
WV$17.341
WY$18.951

How the 95018 rate is calculated

Each of 95018’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 · 95018

RVUs × geographic indexes × conversion factor

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

Work 0.14Practice expense 0.42Malpractice 0.01

0.5700 adjusted RVUs×$33.4009 conversion factor=$19.04

All indexes start at 1.000 (the national rate). Enter a ZIP or drag a slider.

Payment rules and modifiers for 95018

95018 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 · 95018

Which rate does Medicare pay?

The POS code on the claim line (CMS-1500 box 24B).

Non-facility (office) rate · national

$19.04

The facility rate would be $6.01 (+$13.03). In a facility, the facility bills its own costs separately.

95018 compared with similar codes

Compare codes

95018 vs 95017 vs 95004 vs 95024: national Medicare rates

Swap in your local Medicare rate.

  • 95018
    Drug allergy testing · 0.14 wRVU
    $19.04
  • 95017
    Venom testing · 0.07 wRVU
    $8.02−$11.02
  • 95004
    Allergy skin prick test · 0.01 wRVU
    $3.67−$15.37
  • 95024
    Intradermal allergy test · 0.01 wRVU
    $7.68−$11.36

How to choose

95017Venom testing
95018 is for drug or biologic allergy testing; 95017 is used for venom testing.
95004Allergy skin prick test
95004 describes percutaneous tests with allergenic extracts. Choose 95018 when testing drugs or biologicals, including when percutaneous testing is part of a combination of methods.
95024Intradermal allergy test
95024 is for intracutaneous tests with allergenic extracts. 95018 covers drug or biologic testing using intracutaneous testing alone or with percutaneous testing.

95018 billing questions

When should 95018 be chosen over 95017?

Use 95018 for drug or biological products. Code 95017 is the related testing code for venom allergy testing.

Can percutaneous and intracutaneous methods be reported together under 95018?

Yes. The code covers any combination of these methods for drug or biologic testing; report the number of tests performed.

Is interpretation separately billable?

Test interpretation and the report are included in 95018. Document the results and the clinician’s interpretation in the record.

What documentation supports the number of tests?

Record the drug or biological agents tested, the methods used, and the individual test results. The reported number should reflect the tests actually performed.

Is 95018 for environmental allergen testing?

No. It is for immediate-reaction testing with drugs or biologicals. Testing with allergenic extracts is represented by other allergy-testing codes, such as 95004 or 95024.

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

Show the CMS file lines behind this rate
RVUs for 95018PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv, line 12,460 (RVU26D)

Open CMS sourceHow we calculate rates

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