CT Chest With Contrast Cost in Missouri
Ct thorax dx c+
Missouri Medicare physician rate (2026)
-6.2% vs nationalAverage of 3 localities. Office range $149.22–$160.63.
Your ZIP in Missouri
Enter a ZIP code to see which Missouri locality covers you: metro St. Louis, metro Kansas City, or rest-of-state areas like Springfield, Columbia, Joplin, and the Bootheel.
What this number is
The figures on this page are 2026 Medicare physician allowed amounts for a specific CPT code: the professional fee, adjusted by geographic practice-cost indices. They are not a hospital chargemaster price, not your insurer's contracted rate, and not a quote. Hospital facility fees, anesthesia, implants, imaging reads, and pathology are billed separately when they apply.
National vs Missouri
Where Missouri ranks for this CPT
CPT 71260 by Missouri locality
| Locality | Office |
|---|---|
| metropolitan st. louis | $160.63 |
| metropolitan kansas city | $158.92 |
| rest of missouri | $149.22 |
PE GPCI ranges from 0.862 to 0.952 in Missouri. That index is why the same CPT is not one price statewide.
CT Chest With Contrast and how Missouri is priced
Missouri is a three-locality state: metropolitan St. Louis and metropolitan Kansas City are each priced separately, and everywhere else falls into a rest-of-state locality with lower geographic adjustments. Both metro localities approve higher amounts than outstate Missouri, and the Kansas City locality applies only to the Missouri side of that metro, since the Kansas side prices under Kansas's statewide locality. Springfield, Columbia, and the rural counties all share rest-of-state factors. The metro-versus-outstate gap is the main pricing story here.
St. Louis and Kansas City hold the state's academic medical centers and most of its specialty depth, drawing patients from far beyond Missouri's borders, including southern Illinois and eastern Kansas. Outstate Missouri is served by regional hubs in Springfield, Columbia, and Cape Girardeau, with the Ozarks and Bootheel among the harder places to reach specialty care. Rural hospital viability has been a persistent concern across the state.
This procedure: A chest CT with contrast adds an IV injection of iodine dye during the scan to light up blood vessels, lymph nodes, and masses in the chest. It is preferred when evaluating enlarged lymph nodes, suspected cancer spread, or vascular structures. The scan itself takes under a minute; the appointment runs about 30 minutes including IV placement, and the dye causes a brief warm flush that patients often feel in odd places.
What Is CT Chest With Contrast?
A chest CT with contrast adds an IV injection of iodine dye during the scan to light up blood vessels, lymph nodes, and masses in the chest. It is preferred when evaluating enlarged lymph nodes, suspected cancer spread, or vascular structures. The scan itself takes under a minute; the appointment runs about 30 minutes including IV placement, and the dye causes a brief warm flush that patients often feel in odd places.
What Affects the Cost
- The iodinated contrast is a separate supply charge on top of the scan fee.
- A kidney function blood test may be required before contrast in older patients or those with kidney risk, adding a lab charge.
- Hospital versus freestanding center pricing gaps for contrast CT are just as wide as for any advanced imaging.
- Patients with prior contrast reactions may need pre-medication protocols or an alternative study, changing the cost picture.
- The radiologist's fee for a contrast-enhanced study runs higher than for the plain version.
Questions to Ask Before Booking
- 1.Does my authorization specify a contrast-enhanced chest CT?
- 2.Will I need a kidney function test first, and is that billed to me?
- 3.How much is the contrast agent itself on your bills?
- 4.What is the global price at a freestanding imaging center?
- 5.If I react to dye or my kidneys disqualify me, what happens to the study and the charges?
Other featured procedures in Missouri
CT Chest With Contrast in other states
CT Chest With Contrast in Missouri: questions
How much does ct chest with contrast cost in Missouri?
The 2026 Medicare physician office rate for CPT 71260 averages $156.26 across 3 Missouri localities, from $149.22 in REST OF MISSOURI to $160.63 in METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS. The hospital physician rate averages $156.26. Enter a ZIP for the exact locality.
Does the rate change inside Missouri?
Yes. CMS splits Missouri into 3 payment localities. For this CPT the office physician fee spans $11.41 from the lowest to highest locality. Enter a ZIP code to see which Missouri locality covers you: metro St. Louis, metro Kansas City, or rest-of-state areas like Springfield, Columbia, Joplin, and the Bootheel.
What will a Medicare patient owe for the physician fee?
After the Part B deductible, coinsurance is usually 20% of the allowed amount: about $31 for the office physician line or $31 for the hospital physician line in Missouri. Medigap may cover that 20%. This is not the hospital facility fee.
Is this the full ct chest with contrast bill in Missouri?
No. $156.26 is the Medicare physician allowed amount for CPT 71260. Anesthesia, facility fees, implants, and other CPT codes billed the same day are extra. Missouri ranks #15 of 51 states on this physician line (6% below the national office rate of $166.67).