Lab · CPT 80061

What is CPT code 80061?

Lipid panel (cholesterol).

By Justin Feldstein · Reviewed 2026-06-15

What it covers

A bundled blood test that measures your cholesterol numbers: total cholesterol, HDL (the 'good' kind), and triglycerides, with LDL (the 'bad' kind) usually calculated from those. It's the standard heart-health screen. The group is billed as one panel, not as three or four separate cholesterol tests. A lipid panel is usually ordered as part of a routine physical or to track heart-disease risk over time, and it's typically drawn at the same visit as other blood work, each test on its own line.

When you'd see it

Common at a yearly physical, when checking heart-disease risk, or to track how a cholesterol medication is working. Often ordered fasting.

Roughly what it costs

$10–$75 commonly billed

A ballpark on the billed amount. After insurance or a negotiated rate, what you owe is often far lower. Always compare against your Explanation of Benefits (EOB).

What's usually billed with it

The blood draw (36415) accompanies it, and it's commonly drawn at the same visit as a metabolic panel (80053) or A1c (83036).

What to watch for

If you see separate charges for HDL, triglycerides, or total cholesterol on top of this panel, ask about it — those tests are already inside the lipid panel.

Specific things to question

• The panel and its individual pieces (a separate HDL, triglycerides, or total cholesterol test) both billed — the panel already bundles them.
• An extra direct-LDL test charged when the LDL was simply calculated from the panel.
• Billed more than once for a single draw.

How to check this charge on your own bill

Find 80061 on your itemized bill and match it against your EOB. Confirm it appears only once, that any bundled services aren't also billed separately, and that the amount matches what your insurer says it allowed. If something doesn't line up, that's a fair question for the billing office.