Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications — what U.S. hospitals charge

MS-DRG 144 · Inpatient stay · 14 U.S. hospitals publish a price

Cheapest quarter

under $76,970

Typical charge

$109,114

Dearest quarter

over $118,541

Actually paid

$22,141

The middle U.S. hospital bills $109,114 for Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications. The dearest hospitals charge about 2.7x what the cheapest do for the same coded work. Medicare actually paid about $22,141 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.

Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications cost by state

The middle charge in each state where at least three hospitals publish a price, cheapest first.

State	Hospitals	Typical charge	Range
New York	3	$111,128	$107,101 – $112,917

Where Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications is charged least

Hospitals that performed it at least eleven times, so a single case cannot set the figure.

Hospital	Charged	Actually paid
Massachusetts Eye And Ear Infirmary - Boston, MA	$54,101	$24,357
University Of Alabama Hospital Birmingham, AL	$66,213	$16,357
Baylor University Medical Center Dallas, TX	$71,597	$17,290
Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN	$76,585	$19,467
Rush University Medical Center Chicago, IL	$78,125	$21,772
Musc Medical Center Charleston, SC	$96,808	$20,990
New York-Presbyterian Hospital New York, NY	$107,101	$22,149
Mount Sinai Hospital New York, NY	$111,128	$25,208
Ronald Reagan Ucla Medical Center Los Angeles, CA	$112,214	$31,128
Long Island Jewish Medical Center New Hyde Park, NY	$112,917	$17,270
Indiana University Health Indianapolis, IN	$120,415	$19,309
Hospital Of Univ Of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	$169,576	$21,583

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
Stanford Health Care Stanford, CA	$425,232	$35,544
Adventhealth Orlando Orlando, FL	$185,153	$17,545
Hospital Of Univ Of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	$169,576	$21,583
Indiana University Health Indianapolis, IN	$120,415	$19,309
Long Island Jewish Medical Center New Hyde Park, NY	$112,917	$17,270
Ronald Reagan Ucla Medical Center Los Angeles, CA	$112,214	$31,128
Mount Sinai Hospital New York, NY	$111,128	$25,208
New York-Presbyterian Hospital New York, NY	$107,101	$22,149
Musc Medical Center Charleston, SC	$96,808	$20,990
Rush University Medical Center Chicago, IL	$78,125	$21,772
Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville, TN	$76,585	$19,467
Baylor University Medical Center Dallas, TX	$71,597	$17,290

Questions people ask

What do U.S. hospitals charge for Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications?

Across 14 U.S. hospitals, the middle charge for Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications is $109,114. Half of hospitals charge less than that and half charge more. The cheapest quarter charge under $76,970 and the dearest quarter over $118,541.

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 Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Operating Room Procedures with Complications, the hospitals in the dearest tenth charge about 2.7x 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. $22,141 is roughly what Medicare actually paid per case, against an average charge of $130,840. 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 144: “OTHER EAR, NOSE, MOUTH AND THROAT O.R. PROCEDURES WITH CC”. 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.

Related procedures

Comprehensive Observation Services typically $19,434
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (severe) typically $48,503
Fluid and Electrolyte Disorder (without major complications) typically $30,556
Fainting typically $36,628
Major Small and Large Bowel Procedures with Complications typically $100,513
Red Blood Cell Disorders without Major Complications typically $37,191
Diabetes (with complications) typically $34,584
Major Small and Large Bowel Procedures with Major Complications typically $179,554

Before you are billed

Ask for a written good-faith estimate — you are entitled to one if you are uninsured or paying yourself.
Check the hospital's machine-readable price file; every U.S. hospital must publish one.
If you are insured, ask whether every provider involved is in network — the surprise usually comes from the ones you never met.

Read the guides →