77/100
#422 nationally
Athens Limestone Hospital
700 West Market Street, Athens, AL 35611 · (256) 233-9292
Charges moderately above what care is paid for
For every $1 of care Medicare actually paid for here, Athens Limestone Hospital billed $3.50 in list charges. That gap does not change a Medicare patient's bill — but it is where an uninsured or out-of-network bill starts.
- Charge-to-payment
- 3.5x
- volume-weighted across all its priced work
- Procedures priced
- 46
- inpatient and outpatient combined
- Rank in AL
- #14
- lower markup ranks higher
- CMS quality stars
- 2/5
- shown for context, not in the grade
How this grade was reached
Each component is scored against every other U.S. hospital in the same federal files, so the grade is a position in the country, not a pass mark we invented.
Better than 78% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 66% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 89% of U.S. hospitals.
Better than 67% of U.S. hospitals.
What this hospital treats most
The ten procedures it billed Medicare for most often, with its charge beside the national middle.
| Procedure | Patients | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Comprehensive Observation Services
APC 8011 · Hospital outpatient visit |
178 | $9,168 | $2,259 | -53% |
|
Level 1 Nerve Procedures
APC 5431 · Hospital outpatient visit |
153 | $10,498 | $980 | -8% |
|
Level 1 Intraocular Procedures
APC 5491 · Hospital outpatient visit |
139 | $7,494 | $878 | -36% |
|
Level 3 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5113 · Hospital outpatient visit |
131 | $21,263 | $1,599 | +4% |
|
Level 4 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5114 · Hospital outpatient visit |
91 | $25,450 | $4,073 | -36% |
|
Hip or Knee Replacement (without major complications)
MS-DRG 470 · Inpatient stay |
68 | $35,852 | $12,802 | -55% |
|
Sepsis (severe)
MS-DRG 871 · Inpatient stay |
66 | $26,251 | $12,930 | -60% |
|
Level 5 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5115 · Hospital outpatient visit |
66 | $34,937 | $9,898 | -44% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
63 | $7,959 | $1,246 | -21% |
|
Level 4 Vascular Procedures
APC 5184 · Hospital outpatient visit |
52 | $11,991 | $4,354 | -67% |
Where its charges run furthest above the national middle
Only procedures it performed at least eleven times, so a single unusual case cannot produce the headline.
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Level 3 Musculoskeletal Procedures
APC 5113 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$21,263 | $1,599 | +4% |
|
Level 5 Urology and Related Services
APC 5375 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$26,154 | $3,832 | -5% |
|
Level 4 Urology and Related Services
APC 5374 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$19,623 | $2,940 | -5% |
|
Level 1 Nerve Procedures
APC 5431 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$10,498 | $980 | -8% |
|
Combined Anterior and Posterior Spinal Fusion without Complications/mcc
MS-DRG 455 · Inpatient stay |
$163,618 | $38,051 | -8% |
|
Combined Anterior and Posterior Spinal Fusion with Complications
MS-DRG 454 · Inpatient stay |
$183,618 | $44,862 | -17% |
|
Level 2 Excision/ Biopsy/ Incision and Drainage
APC 5072 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$7,959 | $1,246 | -21% |
|
Respiratory Infection (with complications)
MS-DRG 178 · Inpatient stay |
$26,161 | $7,000 | -30% |
Where it charges least relative to everyone else
| Procedure | Charged | Actually paid | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Organic Disturbances and Intellectual Disability
MS-DRG 884 · Inpatient stay |
$11,780 | $9,460 | -76% |
|
Red Blood Cell Disorders with Major Complications
MS-DRG 811 · Inpatient stay |
$18,209 | $9,626 | -68% |
|
Level 4 Vascular Procedures
APC 5184 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$11,991 | $4,354 | -67% |
|
Heart Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 291 · Inpatient stay |
$15,115 | $8,518 | -65% |
|
Level 2 Endovascular Procedures
APC 5192 · Hospital outpatient visit |
$12,552 | $4,820 | -64% |
|
Kidney Failure (severe)
MS-DRG 682 · Inpatient stay |
$19,492 | $9,750 | -63% |
|
COPD (severe)
MS-DRG 190 · Inpatient stay |
$15,440 | $7,782 | -63% |
|
Hip or Thigh Bone Surgery (with complications)
MS-DRG 481 · Inpatient stay |
$30,801 | $13,608 | -63% |
What this page cannot tell you
- It is not your bill. These are averages across Medicare patients. What you pay depends on your insurance, your plan's negotiated rate and your own case.
- It is not a quality rating. A hospital with a high markup may be excellent, and one with a low markup may not be. We checked: across every U.S. hospital, markup and the CMS quality star rating barely move together.
- A charge is not a cost. Hospitals do not collect their list charges from insured patients. The number matters because it is the opening figure on an uninsured or out-of-network bill.
- Ask for the real number. Every U.S. hospital must publish a machine-readable price file and give you a written good-faith estimate on request.