$116.55
Choose by documented psychotherapy time: at least 53 minutes supports 90837, while 38 to 52 minutes supports 90834. A 50-minute session does not meet the threshold for 90837.
On this page
CMS RVU26D · Effective 2026-10-01
90837 Psychotherapy Medicare reimbursement rates in Colorado
Individual psychotherapy lasting at least 53 minutes is reported with 90837 when the clinician provides the patient's therapy without reporting an E/M service. Compare 90837 office and facility rates across CMS payment localities in Colorado.
Amounts below use the non-QP conversion factor for participating physicians. These are base physician payments before claim-level adjustments, not patient costs or total hospital charges.
What does Medicare pay for 90837 in Colorado?
Colorado has 1 payment locality in this comparison. Use the service location to choose the applicable amount. These are the supported base rates for the payment area shown below, using the same CMS release.
Office / nonfacility
$170.94
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Colorado
One mapped payment locality.
Facility setting
$137.18
1 of 1 localities have a supported rate.
Payment area: Colorado
One mapped payment locality.
These are locality ranges, not averages or address-specific quotes. A facility-setting amount covers the physician service; it does not include a hospital’s separate bill. Choose a locality below to inspect its calculation, compare other payment areas, or price a percentage of Medicare.
Psychiatry
About 90837: Individual psychotherapy, 60 minutes, without E/M
Individual psychotherapy lasting at least 53 minutes is reported with 90837 when the clinician provides the patient's therapy without reporting an E/M service.
This extended individual psychotherapy session uses therapeutic techniques such as cognitive behavioral therapy, supportive therapy, or trauma-focused work to treat a mental health or substance use condition. The clinician works with the patient; a family member or caregiver may participate when the focus remains the patient's individual treatment. Psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors may furnish the service in offices, outpatient settings, or eligible telehealth encounters.
Select 90837 when documented psychotherapy time reaches at least 53 minutes; shorter individual sessions may qualify for 90834 or 90832. Record the psychotherapy time, therapeutic approach, patient's response, and progress toward treatment goals. Do not count scheduling, documentation, or separately reported E/M work as psychotherapy time. If the same clinician also reports an E/M service, report the psychotherapy portion with add-on 90838 rather than 90837. CMS assigns 3.78 work RVUs; its office practice expense RVU is higher than its facility practice expense RVU, so place of service affects payment.
Where the value comes from
- Work RVU3.78 · 76%
- Practice expense (office) RVU1.20 · 24%
- Malpractice RVU0.02 · 0%
6.9M
Medicare services in 2024 · #30 by national volume
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.
90837 compared with similar codes
Office rates for Colorado, from the same CMS release.
$139.25
90838 is the psychotherapy add-on paired with an E/M code when the same clinician provides at least 53 minutes of psychotherapy and reports E/M. Report 90837 for the psychotherapy session without that clinician's E/M service.
$164.08
90839 describes urgent crisis assessment and intervention. Select 90837 for individual psychotherapy that meets its time threshold when the encounter is not crisis psychotherapy.
$111.41
90847 is family psychotherapy with the patient present and family interactions as the treatment focus. Report 90837 when treatment focuses on the individual patient, even if a family member participates.
Compare 90837 by payment locality
Find the payment area for your service address, then open its rate page for calculation inputs, release history and the percentage-of-Medicare tool. A city may cross payment-area boundaries; the ZIP lookup above helps resolve the location.
1 of 1 payment localities
Colorado →
Office / nonfacility
$170.94
Facility
$137.18
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Behavioral health
Compare selected psychiatric diagnostic and individual psychotherapy base rates.
How this local rate is calculated
Each RVU component is multiplied by its own geographic practice cost index (GPCI). The three adjusted components are added, then multiplied by the conversion factor. These are the inputs used for 90837 in Colorado.
PPRRVU2026_Oct_nonQPP.csv
11,533
- Code
- 90837
- Physician work
- 3.78
- Practice expense
- 1.20
- Malpractice
- 0.02
GPCI2026.csv
37
- Locality
- Colorado
- Physician work
- 1.012
- Practice expense
- 1.064
- Malpractice
- 0.781
| Component | RVU | Locality factor | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physician work | 3.78 | × 1.012 | 3.8254 |
| Practice expense | 1.20 | × 1.064 | 1.2768 |
| Malpractice | 0.02 | × 0.781 | 0.0156 |
| Total RVUs | 5.1178 | ||
| Conversion factor | × 33.4009 | ||
Office / nonfacility rate, Colorado$170.94
Explore RVUs, geographic factors and the full formula
Office / nonfacility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 3.78 | 1.012 |
| Practice expense | 1.2 | 1.064 |
| Malpractice | 0.02 | 0.781 |
(3.78 × 1.012 + 1.2 × 1.064 + 0.02 × 0.781) × $33.4009 = $170.94
Facility
| Component | RVU | Local GPCI |
|---|---|---|
| Work | 3.78 | 1.012 |
| Practice expense | 0.25 | 1.064 |
| Malpractice | 0.02 | 0.781 |
(3.78 × 1.012 + 0.25 × 1.064 + 0.02 × 0.781) × $33.4009 = $137.18
The office and facility calculations use their respective practice-expense RVUs. The facility amount here is the physician fee, not a separate hospital or facility bill.
90837 billing questions
What is the minimum time needed to report 90837?
Document at least 53 minutes of psychotherapy. Sessions of 38 to 52 minutes are reported with 90834, and sessions of 16 to 37 minutes with 90832.
Can a psychiatrist report 90837 with an office E/M visit?
When the same clinician reports a separate E/M service and provides at least 53 minutes of psychotherapy, report add-on 90838 with the E/M code instead of 90837. Keep E/M time separate from psychotherapy time.
Can interactive complexity be added?
Yes. Add-on 90785 may be reported when its communication requirements are met and documented, such as using play equipment to overcome a child's inability to communicate through typical language. Routine use of toys alone does not qualify.
Does a family member's participation change the code?
Not when the patient is present and the focus remains the patient's individual treatment. For family psychotherapy focused on family interactions, use 90847 when the patient is present or 90846 when the patient is absent.
When is crisis psychotherapy reported instead of 90837?
Use 90839 for an encounter requiring urgent crisis assessment and intervention, rather than selecting 90837 solely because the session lasts at least 53 minutes. Select by the service furnished and its documented time.
Does a 60-minute appointment automatically qualify for 90837?
No. At least 53 minutes must be spent providing psychotherapy; exclude scheduling, documentation, and time spent on a separately reported E/M service.
Where these rates come from
FeeBase calculates base physician payments from CMS work, practice-expense, and malpractice RVUs, adjusted by each locality’s geographic indices and the applicable conversion factor. Unavailable or separately priced services are labeled rather than assigned a made-up amount.
Source: RVU26D. Effective 2026-10-01 through the day before 2027-01-01.
11,53090833,,Psytx w pt w e/m 30 min,A,,1.71,0.66,,0.19,,0.07,2.44,1.97,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,9,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53190834,,Psytx w pt 45 minutes,A,,2.56,0.83,,0.17,,0.02,3.41,2.75,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,9,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53290836,,Psytx w pt w e/m 45 min,A,,2.17,0.84,,0.24,,0.08,3.09,2.49,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,9,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53390837,,Psytx w pt 60 minutes,A,,3.78,1.20,,0.25,,0.02,5.00,4.05,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,9,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53490838,,Psytx w pt w e/m 60 min,A,,2.86,1.11,,0.32,,0.12,4.09,3.30,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,9,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53590839,,Psytx crisis initial 60 min,A,,3.58,1.19,,0.27,,0.03,4.80,3.88,0,XXX,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
11,53690840,,Psytx crisis ea addl 30 min,A,,1.71,0.58,,0.14,,0.02,2.31,1.87,0,ZZZ,0.00,0.00,0.00,0,0,0,0,0,9,,33.4009,09,0,99,0.00,0.00,0.00
3401112,CA,69,VISALIA,1.017,1.096,0.536
3501112,CA,70,YUBA CITY,1.017,1.096,0.536
3601112,CA,75,REST OF CALIFORNIA,1.017,1.096,0.536
3704112,CO,01,COLORADO,1.012,1.064,0.781
3813102,CT,00,CONNECTICUT,1.020,1.077,1.210
3912202,DC,01,DC + MD/VA SUBURBS,1.054,1.178,1.113
4012102,DE,01,DELAWARE,1.005,0.988,0.899