New Patient Office Visit (level 3)

This is a first visit where a new problem needs a small amount of working out — a symptom that has to be narrowed down, tests ordered, a treatment started. The decision-making is of low complexity, a step above the simplest new patient visit. It is one of the most commonly billed first appointments.

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What it is

This is the first appointment that ends with something to do next. The complaint is not self-evident, so the clinician takes a history, examines, and then orders a blood test or an X-ray, or starts a treatment and sets a date to see whether it worked. In coding terms the decision-making is of low complexity — more than one thing to consider, or some data to gather, but limited risk in the plan. The level can also be reached on total time spent on your care that day, which for a first visit includes reading whatever records arrived from elsewhere and writing the note afterwards. Either route can support the same level; the documentation is what decides.

Why it is done

To sort out a new symptom at a practice you have not used before
To start care for a condition that is suspected but not yet confirmed
To see a specialist for the first time about a problem a primary care clinician could not settle
To begin a treatment and arrange the follow-up that will judge it

What to expect

The appointment runs longer than a routine follow-up because the history is being built from scratch. Expect questions about things that seem unrelated to why you came, an examination, and then a plan — commonly a test, a prescription, or a referral. Results generally come after the visit rather than during it, and the practice will tell you how they report them. Tests ordered on the day are not part of this charge; they are billed by whoever performs them.

Questions worth asking

If blood is drawn here, is it run in this office or sent to an outside laboratory? The outside lab bills you directly and may not be in network.
If imaging is ordered, can it be done at a freestanding center rather than a hospital radiology department? The price difference for the same scan is often large.
Does my plan require a referral before it will pay for a first specialist visit, and is one on file?
Will there be a separate charge for a follow-up phone call or message exchange about the results from this visit?

What New Patient Office Visit (level 3) costs by state

New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Texas — 85 hospitals, median $272.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Florida — 75 hospitals, median $555.89
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Illinois — 47 hospitals, median $205.20
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in California — 41 hospitals, median $109.65
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Tennessee — 34 hospitals, median $58.20
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Ohio — 31 hospitals, median $105.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Wisconsin — 29 hospitals, median $222.20
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Iowa — 28 hospitals, median $189.60
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Pennsylvania — 28 hospitals, median $271.80
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Virginia — 27 hospitals, median $280.20
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in New Jersey — 23 hospitals, median $120.10
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Washington — 23 hospitals, median $165.27
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in New York — 22 hospitals, median $356.62
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Indiana — 19 hospitals, median $390.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Michigan — 19 hospitals, median $103.09
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Missouri — 19 hospitals, median $151.25
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Arizona — 18 hospitals, median $1,566.89
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Oklahoma — 18 hospitals, median $197.45
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Kentucky — 15 hospitals, median $198.60
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in West Virginia — 15 hospitals, median $90.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in North Carolina — 14 hospitals, median $339.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Nebraska — 13 hospitals, median $221.34
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Georgia — 12 hospitals, median $796.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Kansas — 11 hospitals, median $276.40
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Arkansas — 10 hospitals, median $181.35
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Colorado — 10 hospitals, median $470.82
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Mississippi — 10 hospitals, median $93.38
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Oregon — 10 hospitals, median $235.50
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in South Carolina — 10 hospitals, median $160.50
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Maine — 7 hospitals, median $354.55
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Minnesota — 7 hospitals, median $195.20
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Alaska — 4 hospitals, median $308.88
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Wyoming — 4 hospitals, median $886.77
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in South Dakota — 3 hospitals, median $217.60
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Louisiana — 2 hospitals, median $159.38
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Montana — 2 hospitals, median $148.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Nevada — 2 hospitals, median $108.24
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in North Dakota — 2 hospitals, median $186.40
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Hawaii — 1 hospitals, median $51.84
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in Maryland — 1 hospitals, median $117.00
New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost in New Hampshire — 1 hospitals, median $341.20

New Patient Office Visit (level 3) prices at hospitals

See every published price for New Patient Office Visit (level 3): the full national range, the state and hospital breakdowns, and which hospitals charge the least.

New Patient Office Visit (level 3) cost — see all prices →

Sources

CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services): Evaluation & Management Services (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
Medicare.gov: Doctor & other health care provider services (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)

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