How much does Back Problems (severe) cost?
MS-DRG 551 · Inpatient stay · 465 U.S. hospitals publish a price
Cheapest quarter
under $48,827
Typical charge
$69,448
Dearest quarter
over $100,758
Actually paid
$15,990
The middle U.S. hospital bills $69,448 for Back Problems (severe). The dearest hospitals charge about 4.1x what the cheapest do for the same coded work. Medicare actually paid about $15,990 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 Problems (severe) cost by state
The middle charge in each state where at least three hospitals publish a price, cheapest first.
| State | Hospitals | Typical charge | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 9 | $18,447 | $14,636 – $48,886 |
| Massachusetts | 19 | $31,247 | $21,281 – $135,697 |
| Michigan | 15 | $38,942 | $26,373 – $68,107 |
| Mississippi | 3 | $39,108 | $26,881 – $46,574 |
| Oklahoma | 5 | $42,221 | $30,893 – $151,635 |
| Nebraska | 3 | $46,987 | $41,975 – $63,830 |
| Minnesota | 12 | $48,747 | $29,750 – $84,634 |
| Ohio | 16 | $51,085 | $29,267 – $84,388 |
| Iowa | 5 | $53,315 | $26,490 – $101,434 |
| Wisconsin | 5 | $53,772 | $47,613 – $83,792 |
| New Hampshire | 5 | $57,930 | $39,480 – $95,284 |
| North Carolina | 13 | $59,172 | $27,539 – $86,492 |
| Missouri | 12 | $59,339 | $33,703 – $163,314 |
| Virginia | 14 | $59,591 | $30,902 – $146,160 |
| Connecticut | 6 | $60,823 | $47,980 – $83,858 |
| Tennessee | 13 | $61,442 | $35,394 – $147,642 |
| Indiana | 9 | $62,603 | $28,378 – $121,283 |
| Illinois | 21 | $66,229 | $31,170 – $108,322 |
| Kentucky | 5 | $68,255 | $30,127 – $77,011 |
| Pennsylvania | 23 | $71,423 | $42,719 – $219,616 |
| Washington | 9 | $71,787 | $48,344 – $152,361 |
| Alabama | 5 | $72,626 | $42,011 – $136,453 |
| Kansas | 6 | $74,655 | $50,427 – $183,262 |
| Arizona | 8 | $80,655 | $55,779 – $142,073 |
| South Carolina | 7 | $81,187 | $44,914 – $166,937 |
| Florida | 45 | $82,322 | $35,209 – $220,398 |
| Georgia | 9 | $85,172 | $65,628 – $175,407 |
| Texas | 34 | $85,864 | $41,201 – $170,884 |
| Colorado | 3 | $96,356 | $89,629 – $258,280 |
| New York | 30 | $99,134 | $24,517 – $271,661 |
| New Jersey | 17 | $112,876 | $55,694 – $153,460 |
| California | 50 | $124,467 | $42,147 – $390,338 |
| Nevada | 8 | $159,153 | $28,207 – $238,102 |
Where Back Problems (severe) is charged least
Hospitals that performed it at least eleven times, so a single case cannot set the figure.
| Hospital | Charged | Actually paid |
|---|---|---|
|
Suburban Hospital
Bethesda, MD |
$14,636 | $12,969 |
|
Medstar Franklin Square Medical Center
Rosedale, MD |
$17,334 | $15,435 |
|
Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center, Inc
Annapolis, MD |
$17,521 | $15,998 |
|
Meritus Medical Center
Hagerstown, MD |
$17,791 | $16,455 |
|
University Of Md St Joseph Medical Center
Towson, MD |
$18,447 | $16,423 |
|
Winchester Hospital
Winchester, MA |
$21,281 | $12,099 |
|
Good Samaritan Medical Center
Brockton, MA |
$22,645 | $13,311 |
|
Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital Plymouth
Plymouth, MA |
$22,872 | $13,101 |
|
Crouse Hospital
Syracuse, NY |
$24,517 | $14,726 |
|
Cape Cod Hospital
Hyannis, MA |
$25,833 | $17,573 |
|
Henry Ford Health St John Hospital
Detroit, MI |
$26,373 | $15,363 |
|
St Lukes Hospital
Cedar Rapids, IA |
$26,490 | $10,450 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
|
Good Samaritan Hospital
San Jose, CA |
$390,338 | $26,312 |
|
Doctors Medical Center
Modesto, CA |
$354,893 | $16,861 |
|
Desert Regional Medical Center
Palm Springs, CA |
$326,610 | $21,708 |
|
Stanford Health Care
Stanford, CA |
$316,547 | $41,325 |
|
Uci Health - Fountain Valley
Fountain Valley, CA |
$290,002 | $26,101 |
|
Westchester Medical Center
Valhalla, NY |
$271,661 | $30,102 |
|
Dominican Hospital
Santa Cruz, CA |
$266,305 | $25,340 |
|
Montefiore Medical Center
Bronx, NY |
$265,885 | $34,439 |
|
Hca-Healthone Dba Swedish Medical Center
Englewood, CO |
$258,280 | $12,246 |
|
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, CA |
$247,954 | $22,177 |
|
Centennial Hills Hospital Medical Center
Las Vegas, NV |
$238,102 | $14,117 |
|
Hca Florida Lawnwood Hospital
Fort Pierce, FL |
$220,398 | $11,883 |
Questions people ask
How much does Back Problems (severe) cost in the United States?
Across 465 U.S. hospitals, the middle charge for Back Problems (severe) is $69,448. Half of hospitals charge less than that and half charge more. The cheapest quarter charge under $48,827 and the dearest quarter over $100,758.
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 Problems (severe), the hospitals in the dearest tenth charge about 4.1x 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. $15,990 is roughly what Medicare actually paid per case, against an average charge of $86,481. 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 551: “MEDICAL BACK PROBLEMS WITH MCC”. 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.