CPT 78231 · 837 hospitals reporting

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The same procedure costs $53.6 at one hospital and $4,046 at another — a 75× spread for what's billed under the same code. Median: $527.

Cheapest published

$53.6

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

Median across 837 hospitals

$527

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

Most expensive

$4,046

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

Price distribution

159 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
USA HEALTH UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL	AL	$1,178	$527	—	—	5 insurers
THE UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL	NJ	$1,178	$527	—	—	5 insurers
UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM, INC	TN	$1,178	$527	—	—	5 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW RIDGES HOSPITAL	MN	$1,229	$522	—	—	5 insurers
STRAITH HOSPITAL FOR SPECIAL SURGERY	MI	$710	$533	—	—	5 insurers
CARILION MEDICAL CENTER	VA	$1,478	$517	—	—	5 insurers
CRITTENDEN COMMUNITY HOSPITAL	KY	$932	$541	—	—	5 insurers
SHASTA REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER	CA	$2,369	$511	$82.53	$2,369	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH FORSYTH MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$508	$107	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH THOMASVILLE MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$508	$107	$822	5 insurers
MONTEFIORE ST LUKE'S CORNWALL	NY	—	$499	—	—	5 insurers
ST CLARE HOSPITAL	WA	$1,944	$560	$1,400	$1,458	2 insurers
ST CLARE HOSPITAL	WA	$1,944	$560	$455	$2,004	5 insurers
FAIRVIEW LAKES HEALTH SERVICES	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW SOUTHDALE HOSPITAL	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW UNIVERSITY OF MN MEDICAL CENTER	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	4 insurers
FAIRVIEW NORTHLAND REGIONAL HOSPITAL	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	5 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW ST JOHN'S HOSPITAL	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	4 insurers
M HEALTH FAIRVIEW WOODWINDS HOSPITAL	MN	$1,229	$493	—	—	4 insurers
SURGICAL INSTITUTE OF READING	PA	—	$577	$35	$377	2 insurers
JEFFERSON EINSTEIN PHILADELPHIA HOSPITAL	PA	—	$471	—	—	5 insurers
JEFFERSON EINSTEIN MONTGOMERY HOSPITAL	PA	—	$471	—	—	5 insurers
CHRISTUS SOUTHEAST TEXAS- ST ELIZABETH	TX	$1,778	$587	$99.58	$1,511	5 insurers
ST ELIZABETH HOSPITAL	WA	$1,944	$591	$1,400	$1,458	2 insurers
ST ELIZABETH HOSPITAL	WA	$1,944	$591	$455	$2,004	5 insurers
GRANVILLE HEALTH SYSTEMS	NC	$747	$598	—	—	0 insurers
WESTERLY HOSPITAL	RI	$1,225	$441	—	—	5 insurers
BELL HOSPITAL	MI	$1,034	$620	—	—	0 insurers
BRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL	CT	$1,225	$625	—	—	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH PRESBYTERIAN MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$424	$107	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH MATTHEWS MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$424	$107	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH HUNTERSVILLE MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$424	$105	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH MINT HILL MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$424	$107	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT HEALTH BALLANTYNE MEDICAL CENTER	NC	$847	$424	$107	$822	5 insurers
NOVANT PRINCE WILLIAM MEDICAL CENTER	VA	$847	$424	$107	$822	5 insurers
MAUI MEMORIAL MEDICAL CENTER	HI	$1,625	$634	—	—	2 insurers
GREENWICH HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION -	CT	$1,225	$637	—	—	5 insurers
UPHS MARQUETTE DLP HOSPITAL	MI	$1,072	$643	—	—	0 insurers
MOUNT GRANT GENERAL HOSPITAL	NV	$2,925	$408	$35	$2,837	5 insurers
ROXBOROUGH MEMORIAL HOSPITAL	PA	$2,925	$408	$35	$2,837	5 insurers