CPT 36481 · 988 hospitals reporting

Insertion of tube into portal vein of liver

The same procedure costs $75.86 at one hospital and $18,448 at another — a 243× spread for what's billed under the same code. Median: $1,512.

Cheapest published

$75.86

3 entries below $50 already filtered. Remaining low values usually reflect partial-cost line items (professional fee only), not full bills.

Median across 988 hospitals

$1,512

The realistic middle of the cash-price distribution. Use this as your benchmark.

Most expensive

$18,448

Highest published price. Often a gross-charge "list price" rarely actually paid.

Price distribution

388 hospitals · log-scale x-axis

Each bar = number of hospitals charging in that price range. Emerald bar contains the median. Amber dots = entries we flagged as likely partial-cost line items (excluded from the table below).

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Why some prices look unrealistically low or high

Hospitals publish their machine-readable files (MRFs) the way they choose. A single procedure code can appear with very different prices depending on what's being charged:

Global price — facility + implant + anesthesia + surgeon. This is what you'd actually be billed.
Professional fee only — surgeon's portion. Often $500–$2,500 for a major procedure that costs $20K+ globally.
Facility fee only — operating room and recovery, no implant or surgeon.
Per-unit / per-minute charges — e.g. anesthesia time billed at $0.68/min appearing under a CPT code.
Rate multipliers — values like 0.85 meaning "85% of Medicare" rather than dollars.

We filter the most obvious artifacts (under $50, or 25× above the median), but rows in the $500–$2K range for a major procedure are typically professional-only and we can't always tell. Use the median and high-end as the realistic range; treat very low rows as partial-cost line items, not full bills.

500 hospitals reporting

Hospital	State	Gross	Cash price	Min negotiated	Max negotiated	Your insurer
CHI HEALTH SCHUYLER	NE	$1,779	$1,512	$1,606	$1,743	5 insurers
CHI HEALTH SCHUYLER	NE	$1,779	$1,512	$381	$2,014	5 insurers
CHI HEALTH PLAINVIEW HOSPITAL	NE	$1,779	$1,494	$1,606	$1,743	5 insurers
CHI HEALTH PLAINVIEW HOSPITAL	NE	$1,779	$1,494	$1,085	$2,409	5 insurers
MOSAIC LIFE CARE AT ST JOSEPH	MO	$1,800	$1,530	—	—	5 insurers
FRENCH HOSPITAL MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$3,801	$1,490	$1,026	$3,725	5 insurers
FRENCH HOSPITAL MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$3,801	$1,490	$334	$5,432	5 insurers
SHARP MEMORIAL HOSPITAL	CA	$2,058	$1,544	—	—	5 insurers
MULTICARE VALLEY HOSPITAL	WA	$3,673	$1,469	—	—	0 insurers
MARGARETVILLE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL	NY	$2,213	$1,461	—	—	5 insurers
CAPE FEAR VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$2,610	$1,566	—	—	5 insurers
BETSY JOHNSON REGIONAL HOSPITAL	NC	$2,610	$1,566	—	—	5 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW RIDGES HOSPITAL	MN	$3,415	$1,451	—	—	5 insurers
BAPTIST MEDICAL CENTER SOUTH	AL	$8,307	$1,578	—	—	5 insurers
VIRGINIA MASON MEDICAL CENTER	WA	$3,101	$1,582	—	—	4 insurers
VIRGINIA MASON MEDICAL CENTER	WA	$3,101	$1,582	—	—	5 insurers
MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE SYSTEM, INC	TN	$3,410	$1,442	$2,217	$2,217	1 insurers
MEMORIAL HEALTHCARE SYSTEM, INC	TN	$3,410	$1,442	$0.65	$3,196	5 insurers
NORTHSIDE HOSPITAL FORSYTH	GA	—	$1,414	—	—	0 insurers
MARIAN REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$3,801	$1,627	$2,395	$3,725	4 insurers
MARIAN REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$3,801	$1,627	$334	$7,160	5 insurers
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIV HOSPITAL	DC	$3,493	$1,397	—	—	5 insurers
WEST KENDALL BAPTIST HOSPITAL	FL	$2,134	$1,387	—	—	5 insurers
AIKEN REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER	SC	$3,444	$1,378	—	—	2 insurers
SWEETWATER HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION	TN	$3,444	$1,378	—	—	2 insurers
FAIRVIEW LAKES HEALTH SERVICES	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	5 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW SOUTHDALE HOSPITAL	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW UNIVERSITY OF MN MEDICAL CENTER	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	4 insurers
FAIRVIEW NORTHLAND REGIONAL HOSPITAL	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW ST JOHN'S HOSPITAL	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW WOODWINDS HOSPITAL	MN	$3,415	$1,369	—	—	4 insurers
WOODLAND MEMORIAL HOSPITAL	CA	$6,062	$1,661	$667	$5,577	5 insurers
WOODLAND MEMORIAL HOSPITAL	CA	$6,062	$1,661	$334	$6,062	5 insurers
MERCY SAN JUAN MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$6,062	$1,661	$667	$5,031	5 insurers
MERCY SAN JUAN MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$6,062	$1,661	$316	$7,484	5 insurers
UNITYPOINT HEALTH - MERITER	WI	$2,087	$1,670	—	—	4 insurers
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - PANORAMA CITY	CA	$4,789	$1,676	$886	$2,395	3 insurers
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - LOS ANGELES	CA	$4,789	$1,676	$886	$2,395	3 insurers
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - DOWNEY	CA	$4,789	$1,676	$886	$2,395	3 insurers
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL FONTANA/ONTARIO	CA	$4,789	$1,676	$886	$2,395	3 insurers