Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal — what U.S. hospitals charge
MS-DRG 024 · Inpatient stay · 156 U.S. hospitals publish a price
Cheapest quarter
under $113,371
Typical charge
$153,802
Dearest quarter
over $224,907
Actually paid
$36,134
The middle U.S. hospital bills $153,802 for Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal. The dearest hospitals charge about 3.7x what the cheapest do for the same coded work. Medicare actually paid about $36,134 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.
Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal 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 | 3 | $66,005 | $33,060 – $68,578 |
| Massachusetts | 4 | $82,050 | $76,112 – $110,273 |
| Louisiana | 4 | $92,879 | $75,912 – $225,470 |
| Tennessee | 4 | $106,269 | $69,686 – $182,297 |
| Oregon | 3 | $110,836 | $89,804 – $118,899 |
| Michigan | 4 | $121,251 | $54,920 – $177,311 |
| Alabama | 4 | $123,193 | $95,613 – $176,258 |
| Illinois | 6 | $129,008 | $103,802 – $303,547 |
| North Carolina | 10 | $133,210 | $92,204 – $201,011 |
| South Carolina | 3 | $134,213 | $108,782 – $453,686 |
| Washington | 3 | $135,143 | $110,511 – $182,707 |
| Ohio | 5 | $141,829 | $108,787 – $169,751 |
| Wisconsin | 4 | $143,945 | $93,468 – $176,307 |
| Missouri | 3 | $145,265 | $103,388 – $149,740 |
| Virginia | 7 | $155,504 | $93,233 – $543,626 |
| Indiana | 3 | $155,554 | $98,839 – $190,145 |
| Florida | 11 | $168,454 | $119,761 – $512,471 |
| New Jersey | 5 | $174,912 | $140,707 – $554,876 |
| Kentucky | 3 | $191,440 | $170,929 – $278,556 |
| Arizona | 3 | $200,318 | $138,448 – $230,455 |
| Georgia | 6 | $210,603 | $134,081 – $277,980 |
| California | 12 | $220,563 | $146,530 – $420,946 |
| New York | 5 | $224,712 | $101,436 – $401,878 |
| Pennsylvania | 5 | $239,969 | $154,866 – $318,782 |
| Texas | 11 | $258,066 | $128,676 – $652,276 |
Where Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal is charged least
Hospitals that performed it at least eleven times, so a single case cannot set the figure.
| Hospital | Charged | Actually paid |
|---|---|---|
|
Medstar Franklin Square Medical Center
Rosedale, MD |
$33,060 | $29,250 |
|
Bronson Methodist Hospital
Kalamazoo, MI |
$54,920 | $32,353 |
|
Sinai Hospital Of Baltimore
Baltimore, MD |
$66,005 | $57,960 |
|
University Of Maryland Medical Center
Baltimore, MD |
$68,578 | $61,721 |
|
Jackson-Madison County General Hospital
Jackson, TN |
$69,686 | $27,798 |
|
Our Lady Of The Lake Regional Medical Center
Baton Rouge, LA |
$75,912 | $27,511 |
|
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Boston, MA |
$76,112 | $43,112 |
|
Baystate Medical Center
Springfield, MA |
$76,449 | $38,453 |
|
Ochsner Medical Center Acute
New Orleans, LA |
$77,185 | $29,552 |
|
Regions Hospital
Saint Paul, MN |
$78,783 | $35,624 |
|
Rhode Island Hospital
Providence, RI |
$83,352 | $39,093 |
|
Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center
Knoxville, TN |
$84,942 | $26,363 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
|
Alaska Regional Hospital
Anchorage, AK |
$740,861 | $48,111 |
|
Hca Houston Healthcare Kingwood
Kingwood, TX |
$652,276 | $32,026 |
|
Medical City Fort Worth
Fort Worth, TX |
$600,620 | $45,614 |
|
Methodist Hospital
San Antonio, TX |
$561,500 | $39,134 |
|
Capital Health Regional Medical Center
Trenton, NJ |
$554,876 | $38,669 |
|
Cjw Medical Center
Richmond, VA |
$543,626 | $25,620 |
|
Marion Communtiy Hospital
Ocala, FL |
$512,471 | $30,168 |
|
Hca-Healthone Dba Swedish Medical Center
Englewood, CO |
$508,879 | $29,462 |
|
Sunrise Hospital And Medical Center
Las Vegas, NV |
$493,093 | $34,763 |
|
O U Medical Center
Oklahoma City, OK |
$490,230 | $62,269 |
|
Grand Strand Regional Medical Center
Myrtle Beach, SC |
$453,686 | $28,219 |
|
Methodist Hospital Stone Oak
San Antonio, TX |
$428,747 | $23,805 |
Questions people ask
What do U.S. hospitals charge for Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal?
Across 156 U.S. hospitals, the middle charge for Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal is $153,802. Half of hospitals charge less than that and half charge more. The cheapest quarter charge under $113,371 and the dearest quarter over $224,907.
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 Craniotomy with Major Device Implant or Acute Complex Central Nervous System Principal, the hospitals in the dearest tenth charge about 3.7x 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. $36,134 is roughly what Medicare actually paid per case, against an average charge of $191,127. 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 024: “CRANIOTOMY WITH MAJOR DEVICE IMPLANT OR ACUTE COMPLEX CNS PRINCIPAL DIAGNOSIS WITHOUT MC”. 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.