Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or — what U.S. hospitals charge
MS-DRG 518 · Inpatient stay · 12 U.S. hospitals publish a price
Cheapest quarter
under $147,069
Typical charge
$205,608
Dearest quarter
over $224,382
Actually paid
$39,257
The middle U.S. hospital bills $205,608 for Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or. The dearest hospitals charge about 2.5x what the cheapest do for the same coded work. Medicare actually paid about $39,257 per case.
These are charges, not quotes. What you pay depends on your insurance and your own case. The figures matter because the charge is where an uninsured or out-of-network bill starts.
Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or cost by state
The middle charge in each state where at least three hospitals publish a price, cheapest first.
| State | Hospitals | Typical charge | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 5 | $179,617 | $108,070 – $422,324 |
Where Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or is charged least
Hospitals that performed it at least eleven times, so a single case cannot set the figure.
| Hospital | Charged | Actually paid |
|---|---|---|
|
Mayo Clinic
Jacksonville, FL |
$105,112 | $37,785 |
|
Saint John's Health Center
Santa Monica, CA |
$108,070 | $31,224 |
|
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH |
$125,674 | $33,265 |
|
Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento
Sacramento, CA |
$154,200 | $44,097 |
|
Community Hospital Of The Monterey Peninsula
Monterey, CA |
$179,617 | $41,619 |
|
University Of Colorado Hospital Authority
Aurora, CO |
$204,037 | $35,651 |
|
Foundation Surgical Hospital Of San Antonio
San Antonio, TX |
$207,178 | $22,910 |
|
Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla
La Jolla, CA |
$220,245 | $37,466 |
|
Adventhealth Orlando
Orlando, FL |
$224,211 | $44,996 |
|
Brigham And Women's Hospital
Boston, MA |
$224,896 | $49,400 |
|
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
New York, NY |
$283,981 | $50,252 |
|
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, CA |
$422,324 | $42,415 |
Where it is charged most
Hospitals that performed it at least eleven times, so a single case cannot set the figure.
| Hospital | Charged | Actually paid |
|---|---|---|
|
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, CA |
$422,324 | $42,415 |
|
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
New York, NY |
$283,981 | $50,252 |
|
Brigham And Women's Hospital
Boston, MA |
$224,896 | $49,400 |
|
Adventhealth Orlando
Orlando, FL |
$224,211 | $44,996 |
|
Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla
La Jolla, CA |
$220,245 | $37,466 |
|
Foundation Surgical Hospital Of San Antonio
San Antonio, TX |
$207,178 | $22,910 |
|
University Of Colorado Hospital Authority
Aurora, CO |
$204,037 | $35,651 |
|
Community Hospital Of The Monterey Peninsula
Monterey, CA |
$179,617 | $41,619 |
|
Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento
Sacramento, CA |
$154,200 | $44,097 |
|
Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland, OH |
$125,674 | $33,265 |
|
Saint John's Health Center
Santa Monica, CA |
$108,070 | $31,224 |
|
Mayo Clinic
Jacksonville, FL |
$105,112 | $37,785 |
Questions people ask
What do U.S. hospitals charge for Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or?
Across 12 U.S. hospitals, the middle charge for Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or is $205,608. Half of hospitals charge less than that and half charge more. The cheapest quarter charge under $147,069 and the dearest quarter over $224,382.
Why do hospitals charge such different amounts for the same procedure?
Because a hospital charge is a list price it sets itself, not a regulated rate. For Back and Neck Procedures Except Spinal Fusion with Major Complications or Disc Device or, the hospitals in the dearest tenth charge about 2.5x what the cheapest tenth charge for the same coded work. Insurers negotiate their own rates from those lists, which is why the charge and what is actually paid can be very far apart.
Is that what I would actually pay?
No. $39,257 is roughly what Medicare actually paid per case, against an average charge of $225,601. If you have insurance, your plan pays a negotiated rate and you pay your deductible and coinsurance. If you are uninsured or out of network, the hospital's charge is where your bill starts — which is why the gap matters. Ask for a written good-faith estimate before treatment.
What this code covers
CMS records this work as MS-DRG 518: “BACK AND NECK PROCEDURES EXCEPT SPINAL FUSION WITH MCC OR DISC DEVICE OR NEUROSTIMULATOR”. A DRG covers a whole inpatient stay rather than a single item, so the charge includes the room, the procedure and the care around it. Codes that mention complications carry a different, usually higher price.