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Procedure price report · Other OR therapeutic procedures on joints

Open exploration or drainage of collarbone joint

CPT 23044the billing code this page is about

Surgical opening of the joint at either end of the collarbone, where it meets the shoulder blade or the breastbone, to explore, drain, or remove a foreign object.

Hospitals typically charge $1,973 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 384 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $2,291. Most fall between $924 and $4,222 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
384
States
45
Filings dated
Aug 2022 – 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 384 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
$625$1,046$1,973$3,840$6,376

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 10× what the cheapest tenth charges ($625 vs $6,376).

How the prices are spread

$521 – $685: 32 hospitals$521$685 – $901: 21 hospitals$901 – $1,184: 55 hospitals$901$1,184 – $1,556: 47 hospitals$1,556 – $2,046: 23 hospitals$1,556$2,046 – $2,689: 16 hospitals$2,689 – $3,535: 49 hospitals$2,689$3,535 – $4,647: 57 hospitals$4,647 – $6,109: 21 hospitals$4,647$6,109 – $8,030: 31 hospitals$6,109median $1,973price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (352 of 384 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$521$68532
$685$90121
$901$1,18455
$1,184$1,55647
$1,556$2,04623
$2,046$2,68916
$2,689$3,53549
$3,535$4,64757
$4,647$6,10921
$6,109$8,03031

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$3,343
Median cash price$1,973
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.59×

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 $1,973.

Alaska: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMEVermont: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNHWashington: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureIDMontana: 4 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 $2,511 across 15 hospitalsMN$2,511Illinois: median $1,079 across 11 hospitalsIL$1,079Wisconsin: median $2,983 across 29 hospitalsWI$2,983Michigan: median $1,111 across 27 hospitalsMI$1,111New York: median $3,840 across 23 hospitalsNY$3,840Massachusetts: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMAOregon: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureORNevada: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNVWyoming: 5 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 $1,390 across 16 hospitalsIA$1,390Indiana: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: median $1,973 across 13 hospitalsOH$1,973Pennsylvania: median $843 across 21 hospitalsPA$843New Jersey: median $3,986 across 24 hospitalsNJ$3,986Connecticut: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $3,141 across 40 hospitalsCA$3,141Utah: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceUTColorado: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 9 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: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAZNew Mexico: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNMKansas: 5 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: 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 $1,196 across 13 hospitalsOK$1,196Louisiana: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMSAlabama: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $4,222 across 22 hospitalsTX$4,222Florida: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureFL
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $1,973. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
Texas TX22$4,222+114%$2,653 – $4,222
New Jersey NJ24$3,986+102%$3,591 – $5,741
New York NY23$3,840+95%$1,356 – $3,884
California CA40$3,141+59%$1,743 – $8,030
Wisconsin WI29$2,983+51%$2,822 – $4,956
Minnesota MN15$2,511+27%$1,283 – $2,511
Ohio OH13$1,9730%$921 – $2,326
Iowa IA16$1,390−30%$1,390 – $1,592
Oklahoma OK13$1,196−39%$1,196 – $6,615
Michigan MI27$1,111−44%$1,010 – $2,983
Illinois IL11$1,079−45%$625 – $1,169
Pennsylvania PA21$843−57%$366 – $5,038
West Virginia WV9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Florida FL7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Idaho ID7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Oregon OR7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Georgia GA4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alaska AK3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maine ME2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Connecticut CT1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Massachusetts MA1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Mexico NM1not 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 $1,973.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care290$2,382$1,010 – $4,474
Children’s9fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access84$1,455$746 – $2,983
Ownership
For-profit37$2,983$762 – $6,376
Government53$1,275$989 – $3,322
Non-profit293$2,326$937 – $4,233
System affiliation
Part of a system305$2,822$1,010 – $4,499
Independent79$1,142$841 – $2,764

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$2,027
Median cash price$1,973
Cash as a share of list, median hospital62%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 38%. 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

210 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $1,532 and the average of the middle 60% is $2,118; most fall between $838 and $4,222.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 210 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
$625$1,010$1,532$3,814$8,030

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 13× what the cheapest tenth charges ($625 vs $8,030).

Of the 236 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 210 gave a usable cash price; 17 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 9 a list price only.

How complete is this

384 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (10%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 430 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted384
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here37
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 — excluded8
Hospitals that filed this code430

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 Other OR therapeutic procedures on joints family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Arthrt Acromclav Strnclav Jt Expl/Drg/Rmvl FB.

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, “Open exploration or drainage of collarbone joint (CPT 23044) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-23044-open-exploration-or-drainage-of-collarbone-joint