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Procedure price report · Partial excision bone

Drainage of deep chest abscess with partial rib removal

CPT 21502the billing code this page is about

Incision to drain a deep abscess or blood collection in the neck or chest, including removal of part of a rib to reach it.

Hospitals typically charge $2,037 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 262 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $2,451. Most fall between $803 and $4,680 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
262
States
39
Filings dated
Jun 2024 – Sep 2026
Computed
September 25, 2026
Prices checked
through September 23, 2026

Median: half of hospitals filed less, half more — and it is a price some hospital actually filed. Average of the middle 60%: the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain average, the lowest or the highest price: the extremes in hospital price files are chargemaster artefacts, not prices anyone pays.

What hospitals charge, from cheapest to most expensive

Cash price percentiles, outpatient, across 262 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$513$834$2,037$4,499$6,412

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 13× what the cheapest tenth charges ($513 vs $6,412).

How the prices are spread

$393 – $522: 23 hospitals$393$522 – $692: 8 hospitals$692 – $917: 33 hospitals$692$917 – $1,217: 19 hospitals$1,217 – $1,613: 27 hospitals$1,217$1,613 – $2,139: 10 hospitals$2,139 – $2,837: 8 hospitals$2,139$2,837 – $3,762: 31 hospitals$3,762 – $4,988: 46 hospitals$3,762$4,988 – $6,615: 32 hospitals$4,988median $2,037price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (237 of 262 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$393$52223
$522$6928
$692$91733
$917$1,21719
$1,217$1,61327
$1,613$2,13910
$2,139$2,8378
$2,837$3,76231
$3,762$4,98846
$4,988$6,61532

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$3,343
Median cash price$2,037
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.61×

The Medicare figure is the national unadjusted OPPS rate for this code — what Medicare itself pays a hospital before local wage adjustment. It is a benchmark, not a price anyone is charged.

By state

The median cash price in each state, against the national median of $2,037.

Alaska: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMEVermont: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNHWashington: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureIDMontana: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMTNorth Dakota: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNDMinnesota: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMNIllinois: median $1,041 across 11 hospitalsIL$1,041Wisconsin: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWIMichigan: median $585 across 23 hospitalsMI$585New York: median $3,840 across 21 hospitalsNY$3,840Massachusetts: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMAOregon: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureORNevada: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNVWyoming: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWYSouth Dakota: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSDIowa: median $1,234 across 15 hospitalsIA$1,234Indiana: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceINOhio: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureOHPennsylvania: median $386 across 18 hospitalsPA$386New Jersey: median $3,986 across 22 hospitalsNJ$3,986Connecticut: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $6,412 across 37 hospitalsCA$6,412Utah: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceUTColorado: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWVVirginia: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceVAMaryland: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMDDelaware: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceDEArizona: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAZNew Mexico: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNMKansas: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKSArkansas: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTNNorth Carolina: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNCSouth Carolina: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $834 across 12 hospitalsOK$834Louisiana: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMSAlabama: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceGAHawaii: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceHITexas: median $2,997 across 21 hospitalsTX$2,997Florida: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureFL
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $2,037. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
California CA37$6,412+215%$4,680 – $6,412
New Jersey NJ22$3,986+96%$3,591 – $5,419
New York NY21$3,840+88%$3,343 – $3,884
Texas TX21$2,997+47%$2,997 – $2,997
Iowa IA15$1,234−39%$1,234 – $1,234
Illinois IL11$1,041−49%$393 – $1,234
Oklahoma OK12$834−59%$834 – $834
Michigan MI23$585−71%$513 – $1,381
Pennsylvania PA18$386−81%$315 – $5,486
Ohio OH7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Idaho ID6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Oregon OR5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Florida FL4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
West Virginia WV3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Mexico NM2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alaska AK1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maine ME1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Minnesota MN1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Dakota SD1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wisconsin WI1not enough hospitals filed a usable price

Hospitals like yours

The same distribution cut by the kind of hospital. Hospital type and ownership come from CMS; a hospital counts as part of a system when its price file is shared with at least one other hospital under the same brand. The national median is $2,037.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care229$2,566$819 – $4,680
Children’s8fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access23$938$476 – $4,001
Ownership
For-profit27$1,814$656 – $4,636
Government29$1,414$910 – $3,840
Non-profit204$2,198$789 – $5,038
System affiliation
Part of a system221$2,198$789 – $4,680
Independent41$1,126$849 – $3,553

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$1,726
Median cash price$2,037
Cash as a share of list, median hospital60%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 40%. The share is the median of each hospital’s own cash ÷ list ratio, over hospitals that filed both — not the ratio of the two medians above.

The same procedure, inpatient

161 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $1,942 and the average of the middle 60% is $3,000; most fall between $834 and $6,412.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 161 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$619$849$1,942$4,680$6,412

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 10× what the cheapest tenth charges ($619 vs $6,412).

Of the 180 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 161 gave a usable cash price; 14 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 5 a list price only.

How complete is this

262 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (7%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 293 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted262
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here28
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded2
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded0
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded1
Hospitals that filed this code293

Sections not shown for this setting

  • Since our last snapshot: there is no earlier snapshot at least 90 days older than this one yet.

We last checked these hospitals’ price files for changes between September 4, 2026 and September 23, 2026; the figures were computed September 25, 2026 from filings loaded through September 23, 2026. The percentiles and averages use only the “counted” row.

Related procedures

Part of the Partial excision bone family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as I&D Dp Absc/Hmtma Sft Tis Nck/Thrx Prtl Rib Ostc.

Method

Source
The machine-readable price files every U.S. hospital is required by CMS to publish, parsed per hospital. Nothing is surveyed, sampled or modelled.
What counts
One cash (self-pay) price per hospital for this code and setting. A hospital’s own filing can rule its number out — a placeholder, a “not applicable” note, a list price standing in for cash — and our plausibility checks can flag a price far below what every other hospital files. Both kinds are disclosed above and excluded from the statistics; on the compare tool a flagged price is still shown.
Statistics
Percentiles are discrete: each is a price some hospital filed. The average is the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain mean, the minimum or the maximum. A state needs 10 hospitals and a segment 20 to show a figure; otherwise the row shows its count and no number. Medicare is the national unadjusted OPPS rate where one exists.
Names
Procedure names on these pages are our own plain-language titles, not the AMA’s copyrighted CPT descriptors. The code is the identity.

The full rules — sources, statistics, thresholds, limitations — are on the methodology page.

Download this page’s figures: JSON · CSV. Aggregates only — the per-hospital prices are on the compare tool.

Cite: HospitalRates.com, “Drainage of deep chest abscess with partial rib removal (CPT 21502) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-21502-drainage-of-deep-chest-abscess-with-partial-rib-removal