Level 6 Musculoskeletal Procedures
In 2024, Medicare and patients paid an average of $17,392 per procedure at 1,481 hospitals. Half of hospitals averaged between $16,055 and $18,131.
Also known as: Orthopedic surgery, arthroscopy, outpatient joint surgery
National figures, 2024
- Average payment per case
- $17,392
- Typical range (middle half of hospitals)
- $16,055–$18,131
- Medicare’s share
- $15,763
- Average billed charge
- $97,523
- Hospitals reporting
- 1,481
Hospitals in Pennsylvania
Narrow by a state, city or ZIP code (optionally a distance around it), and/or pick specific hospitals. With both, your picks are added to the area’s hospitals.
- Average payment across these 65 hospitals
- $17,344
- Median hospital
- $16,990
- Lowest to highest
- $16,034–$19,594
- Medicare procedures
- 3,133
65 hospitals reported at least 11 Medicare procedures for this in 2024; showing 1–50. Download as CSV
| Hospital | Cases | Average payment | vs national average | Medicare paid | Billed charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conemaugh Nason Medical Center | 26 | $16,034 | About average | $14,402 | $75,054 |
| Geisinger Medical Center | 33 | $16,156 | About average | $14,523 | $159,618 |
| Holy Redeemer Hospital And Medical Center | 11 | $16,183 | About average | $14,633 | $49,533 |
| Jefferson Lansdale Hospital | 12 | $16,223 | About average | $14,591 | $44,653 |
| UPMC Passavant | 85 | $16,259 | About average | $14,626 | $85,182 |
| Penn State Health Lancaster Medical Center | 32 | $16,391 | About average | $14,756 | $166,751 |
| UPMC Pinnacle Hospitals | 98 | $16,511 | About average | $14,879 | $51,041 |
| Ahn Wexford Hospital | 21 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $70,504 |
| Allegheny General Hospital | 28 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $68,434 |
| Edgewood Surgical Hospital | 37 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $63,640 |
| Forbes Hospital | 20 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $56,826 |
| Heritage Valley Sewickley | 35 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $40,728 |
| Independence Health System Butler Memorial Hospita | 22 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $68,155 |
| Jefferson Hospital | 17 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $73,812 |
| Lehigh Valley Hospital - Dickson City | 64 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $130,178 |
| St Clair Hospital | 20 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $74,241 |
| Uniontown Hospital | 42 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $37,199 |
| UPMC St Margaret | 42 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $95,505 |
| UPMC Williamsport | 41 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $75,108 |
| Wellspan Evangelical Community Hospital | 55 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $89,985 |
| Wilkes-Barre General Hospital | 20 | $16,610 | About average | $14,978 | $140,910 |
| UPMC East | 41 | $16,610 | About average | $14,976 | $95,576 |
| Excela Health Latrobe Hospital | 16 | $16,610 | About average | $14,975 | $49,333 |
| Geisinger-Community Medical Center | 45 | $16,610 | About average | $14,975 | $148,808 |
| Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center | 36 | $16,610 | About average | $14,973 | $191,611 |
| Advanced Surgical Hospital | 15 | $16,610 | About average | $14,957 | $79,728 |
| Penn State Health Hampden Medical Center | 17 | $16,664 | About average | $15,032 | $155,480 |
| Surgical Institute Of Reading | 42 | $16,739 | About average | $15,107 | $56,417 |
| Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center | 40 | $16,837 | About average | $15,205 | $176,053 |
| UPMC Carlisle | 35 | $16,837 | About average | $15,205 | $50,817 |
| Oss Orthopaedic Hospital | 119 | $16,905 | About average | $15,273 | $64,005 |
| Wellspan Ephrata Community Hospital | 59 | $16,957 | About average | $15,325 | $109,168 |
| Reading Hospital | 16 | $16,990 | About average | $15,358 | $75,295 |
| Milton S Hershey Medical Center | 72 | $17,062 | About average | $15,427 | $195,927 |
| Robert Packer Hospital | 75 | $17,082 | About average | $15,450 | $67,209 |
| Lancaster General Hospital | 112 | $17,157 | About average | $15,525 | $52,816 |
| UPMC Memorial | 12 | $17,178 | About average | $15,546 | $53,108 |
| Wellspan Surgery And Rehabilitation Hospital | 87 | $17,178 | About average | $15,546 | $132,602 |
| Wellspan York Hospital | 49 | $17,179 | About average | $15,547 | $162,202 |
| Jefferson Abington Hospital | 87 | $17,444 | About average | $15,812 | $62,664 |
| Physicians Care Surgical Hospital | 93 | $17,444 | About average | $15,810 | $50,511 |
| UPMC Hanover | 25 | $17,503 | About average | $15,871 | $57,831 |
| St Lukes Hospital | 79 | $17,718 | About average | $16,085 | $143,374 |
| Thomas Jefferson University Hospital | 133 | $17,733 | About average | $16,101 | $73,186 |
| Rothman Orthopaedic Specialty Hospital | 77 | $17,740 | About average | $16,107 | $73,522 |
| Meadville Medical Center | 20 | $17,787 | About average | $16,155 | $44,796 |
| St Luke's Hospital - Easton Campus | 25 | $17,858 | About average | $16,226 | $166,275 |
| Riddle Memorial Hospital | 80 | $17,905 | About average | $16,272 | $53,686 |
| Paoli Hospital | 60 | $17,938 | About average | $16,306 | $58,803 |
| Bryn Mawr Hospital | 93 | $17,938 | About average | $16,306 | $57,834 |
National trend
Average payment and billed charge per procedure, and how many Medicare procedures were reported each year.
- Average payment
- Average billed charge
View data as a table
| Year of care | Average payment | Average billed charge |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $15K | $75K |
| 2021 | $15K | $116K |
| 2022 | $16K | $92K |
| 2023 | $21K | $112K |
| 2024 | $17K | $98K |
By state, 2024
Case-weighted average payment across each state’s reporting hospitals, lowest first.
Show all 50 states
| State | Hospitals | Cases | Average payment | Typical range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vermont | 3 | 119 | $8,999 | $8,453–$10,624 |
| Alabama | 25 | 1,210 | $15,164 | $14,755–$15,349 |
| Utah | 23 | 1,080 | $15,193 | $16,244–$16,659 |
| Tennessee | 33 | 2,084 | $15,325 | $15,130–$15,866 |
| Mississippi | 14 | 683 | $15,430 | $15,026–$15,570 |
| Louisiana | 30 | 1,108 | $15,576 | $15,464–$15,754 |
| West Virginia | 12 | 558 | $15,715 | $14,973–$15,721 |
| Oklahoma | 30 | 1,351 | $15,834 | $15,611–$16,023 |
| Arkansas | 21 | 1,202 | $15,872 | $15,523–$16,345 |
| South Carolina | 30 | 1,929 | $15,906 | $15,619–$16,100 |
| Ohio | 73 | 3,030 | $15,978 | $15,826–$16,279 |
| Kentucky | 22 | 1,410 | $16,042 | $15,742–$16,096 |
| Kansas | 23 | 1,240 | $16,065 | $15,767–$16,241 |
| Iowa | 20 | 1,326 | $16,087 | $15,847–$16,340 |
| Missouri | 35 | 1,775 | $16,103 | $15,799–$16,551 |
| Virginia | 41 | 2,439 | $16,328 | $15,963–$17,432 |
| Texas | 127 | 5,228 | $16,373 | $16,124–$16,789 |
| Michigan | 44 | 1,746 | $16,380 | $15,785–$17,123 |
| Georgia | 42 | 1,898 | $16,409 | $15,899–$17,257 |
| North Carolina | 45 | 2,608 | $16,492 | $16,184–$16,710 |
| Indiana | 47 | 2,034 | $16,575 | $16,509–$16,797 |
| Florida | 86 | 5,085 | $16,629 | $16,634–$16,845 |
| Nebraska | 16 | 1,011 | $16,771 | $16,741–$16,936 |
| Wisconsin | 38 | 1,368 | $16,885 | $16,647–$17,067 |
| Idaho | 13 | 741 | $16,900 | $16,735–$17,428 |
| New Mexico | 9 | 300 | $17,126 | $15,882–$17,343 |
| Maine | 7 | 292 | $17,280 | $16,837–$17,471 |
| Pennsylvania | 65 | 3,133 | $17,344 | $16,610–$17,938 |
| Illinois | 56 | 2,463 | $17,391 | $17,185–$17,654 |
| North Dakota | 6 | 437 | $17,467 | $17,235–$18,360 |
| South Dakota | 10 | 790 | $17,472 | $17,281–$18,289 |
| Montana | 9 | 516 | $17,606 | $17,193–$18,232 |
| Colorado | 37 | 2,121 | $17,744 | $17,468–$17,701 |
| Minnesota | 27 | 1,383 | $18,117 | $17,504–$18,536 |
| Wyoming | 8 | 289 | $18,154 | $18,579–$18,669 |
| New Hampshire | 11 | 403 | $18,184 | $17,654–$18,332 |
| Arizona | 37 | 2,369 | $18,231 | $17,996–$18,131 |
| Delaware | 5 | 457 | $18,546 | $18,654–$18,654 |
| Rhode Island | 3 | 157 | $18,657 | $18,634–$18,765 |
| District of Columbia | 4 | 199 | $18,848 | $18,878–$19,023 |
| Washington | 33 | 1,628 | $19,062 | $18,661–$19,156 |
| Alaska | 3 | 180 | $19,345 | $18,819–$19,653 |
| New Jersey | 28 | 1,653 | $19,847 | $19,222–$20,663 |
| Oregon | 20 | 929 | $19,883 | $19,066–$19,507 |
| Massachusetts | 34 | 1,711 | $19,887 | $19,966–$19,966 |
| New York | 51 | 1,970 | $19,922 | $19,552–$20,841 |
| Nevada | 9 | 617 | $19,943 | $19,802–$19,910 |
| Connecticut | 16 | 778 | $20,733 | $20,681–$20,925 |
| Hawaii | 3 | 70 | $21,247 | $21,066–$22,304 |
| California | 97 | 4,332 | $23,412 | $22,851–$23,737 |
About these numbers
Average payment is what Medicare paid plus the patient’s deductible and coinsurance (and any other insurer), averaged over the hospital’s Medicare cases. It covers the hospital’s part of the care; doctors bill separately. For outpatient procedures it is Medicare’s allowed amount, which leaves out extra “outlier” payments for unusually costly cases; those are shown under the hospital name where CMS reported any, and included in the CSV. Billed charges are the hospital’s list prices, which few patients pay.
Medicare sets its payments by formula, adjusting for local wages, teaching programs, the share of low-income patients and unusually costly cases. Those adjustments drive most differences between hospitals, so a lower payment doesn’t mean better or worse care, and Medicare patients’ own costs usually vary much less than the totals. Private insurance pays different, usually higher, prices.
Source: CMS Medicare Outpatient Hospitals by Provider and Service (Medicare fee-for-service claims). CMS omits hospitals with fewer than 11 procedures. More in the glossary.