Blood Draw (Venipuncture)
What should this cost?
Medicare Pays
$3
National benchmark
Typical Range
$15–$75
What hospitals charge
Markup
15×
Above Medicare rate
What this code means on your bill
Routine blood collection by needle into a vein. This is the draw fee — separate from whatever tests are run on the blood.
Commonly billed for
Any blood test — always billed in addition to lab test charges
What to watch for
Upcoding
If your visit seemed straightforward but you see a high-level code, the provider may have billed for a more complex service than what was performed. Compare the code level to the time you actually spent with the doctor.
Duplicate charges
Check if this code appears more than once on the same date of service. Unless you had the same procedure performed twice (rare), a duplicate is likely a billing error.
Price check
If you're being charged more than 90 for this service, it's significantly above the typical range. Request an itemized bill and compare against the Medicare rate of $3.
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