# Heart catheterization (left heart): what Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield pays, by state

A thin tube threaded to the heart to check for blockages and measure pressures.

- Insurer: Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield (Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, New York)
- Billing code: 93452 (Heart tests)
- Price shown: negotiated in-network price, surgery center / hospital outpatient, doctor's and facility fees
- Prices as of: 2026-09-21
- All of the insurer's plans pooled; the map also shows single networks

| State | Providers | Lowest | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | Highest | Medicare pays | Median vs Medicare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware | 1 | $6,156.69 | $6,156.69 | $6,156.69 | $6,156.69 | $6,156.69 | $865.41 | 7.1x Medicare |
| New York | 1 | $317.95 | $317.95 | $317.95 | $317.95 | $317.95 | $974.72 | 0.3x Medicare |
| Pennsylvania | 2 | $7,106.95 | $8,009.23 | $8,911.50 | $9,813.78 | $10,716.06 | $865.16 | 10x Medicare |

**“x Medicare”** compares each price with what original Medicare pays a doctor for the same service in the same state under its physician fee schedule (RVU26D, in force from 2026-10-01) — the price for a doctor's own office. Insurers write their contracts as a share of Medicare, so 1.3x means the insurer pays 30% more than Medicare would; Medicare Advantage plans generally pay close to 1.0x. The prices on this map include a **facility fee**, which Medicare pays separately and which is not in its physician price, so the ratio here runs high and is a rough guide only.

Prices are what the insurer has agreed to pay, not what you will be billed. This is a statewide summary: prices vary far more between towns and between practices than these medians suggest, and "providers" counts everyone with a contracted price, not only those who perform the procedure.

Map: https://medicalpricetransparency.netlify.app/insurers/highmark/statemap_93452_US.html  
About this insurer's data, and its other procedures: [index.md](index.md)