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Procedure price report · Spinal fusion

Upper back spine fusion from the front, one level

CPT 22556the billing code this page is about

Fusion of chest-level vertebrae using a front approach with a graft or spacer placed between the bones; covers one disc space.

Hospitals typically charge $4,740 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 231 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $5,194. Most fall between $2,379 and $11,044 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
231
States
43
Filings dated
Mar 2023 – 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 231 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
$1,556$2,869$4,740$7,955$20,812

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 13× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,556 vs $20,812).

How the prices are spread

$1,029 – $1,411: 9 hospitals$1,029$1,411 – $1,934: 11 hospitals$1,934 – $2,651: 20 hospitals$1,934$2,651 – $3,634: 21 hospitals$3,634 – $4,982: 50 hospitals$3,634$4,982 – $6,829: 40 hospitals$6,829 – $9,360: 16 hospitals$6,829$9,360 – $12,831: 10 hospitals$12,831 – $17,588: 13 hospitals$12,831$17,588 – $24,110: 20 hospitals$17,588median $4,740price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (210 of 231 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$1,029$1,4119
$1,411$1,93411
$1,934$2,65120
$2,651$3,63421
$3,634$4,98250
$4,982$6,82940
$6,829$9,36016
$9,360$12,83110
$12,831$17,58813
$17,588$24,11020

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$17,914
Median cash price$4,740
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.26×

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 $4,740.

Alaska: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMEVermont: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNHWashington: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 3 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: median $6,611 across 14 hospitalsMN$6,611Illinois: median $3,881 across 11 hospitalsIL$3,881Wisconsin: median $7,955 across 13 hospitalsWI$7,955Michigan: median $4,263 across 23 hospitalsMI$4,263New York: median $14,990 across 20 hospitalsNY$14,990Massachusetts: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMAOregon: median $543 across 10 hospitalsOR$543Nevada: 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 $4,014 across 16 hospitalsIA$4,014Indiana: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: median $6,192 across 11 hospitalsOH$6,192Pennsylvania: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figurePANew Jersey: median $5,419 across 15 hospitalsNJ$5,419Connecticut: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCAUtah: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceUTColorado: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWVVirginia: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVAMaryland: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMDDelaware: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceDEArizona: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAZNew Mexico: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceNMKansas: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKSArkansas: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTNNorth Carolina: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNCSouth Carolina: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $2,283 across 11 hospitalsOK$2,283Louisiana: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMSAlabama: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTXFlorida: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureFL
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $4,740. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
New York NY20$14,990+216%$4,413 – $20,812
Wisconsin WI13$7,955+68%$7,955 – $16,427
Minnesota MN14$6,611+39%$4,435 – $6,611
Ohio OH11$6,192+31%$3,148 – $6,422
New Jersey NJ15$5,419+14%$4,350 – $6,839
Michigan MI23$4,263−10%$4,263 – $4,930
Iowa IA16$4,014−15%$4,014 – $4,014
Illinois IL11$3,881−18%$1,307 – $6,228
Oklahoma OK11$2,283−52%$2,283 – $2,283
Oregon OR10$543−89%$543 – $5,418
Pennsylvania PA7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Florida FL6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
California CA5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Texas TX5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Georgia GA3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Idaho ID3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Virginia VA3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA3not 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
Kentucky KY2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN2not 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
Connecticut CT1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Dakota SD1not 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 $4,740.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care184$4,435$2,283 – $12,706
Children’s8fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access38$5,418$2,856 – $7,955
Ownership
For-profit29$7,450$2,117 – $30,599
Government29$4,336$2,784 – $15,862
Non-profit172$4,627$2,379 – $7,955
System affiliation
Part of a system182$4,881$2,283 – $11,100
Independent49$4,371$2,560 – $9,882

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$5,017
Median cash price$4,740
Cash as a share of list, median hospital70%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 30%. 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

119 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $3,518 and the average of the middle 60% is $3,503; most fall between $1,894 and $5,968.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 119 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
$1,104$2,283$3,518$4,930$10,350

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 9.4× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,104 vs $10,350).

Of the 147 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 119 gave a usable cash price; 25 carried a plausibility flag, 1 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 2 a list price only.

How complete is this

231 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (6%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 282 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted231
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here46
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded1
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded0
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded4
Hospitals that filed this code282

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 Spinal fusion family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Arthrd Ant Interbody Min Dsc Thoracic.

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, “Upper back spine fusion from the front, one level (CPT 22556) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-22556-upper-back-spine-fusion-from-the-front-one-level