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Procedure price report · Other OR therapeutic procedures on joints

Knee arthroscopy with drilling of a cartilage lesion

CPT 29886the billing code this page is about

Keyhole knee surgery in which a small cartilage-and-bone lesion that is still in place is drilled to encourage healing.

Hospitals typically charge $3,159 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 396 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $2,873. Most fall between $1,213 and $5,317 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
396
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 396 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
$949$1,378$3,159$4,415$8,770

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 9.2× what the cheapest tenth charges ($949 vs $8,770).

How the prices are spread

$687 – $895: 14 hospitals$687$895 – $1,165: 37 hospitals$1,165 – $1,518: 37 hospitals$1,165$1,518 – $1,977: 50 hospitals$1,977 – $2,575: 24 hospitals$1,977$2,575 – $3,354: 51 hospitals$3,354 – $4,368: 64 hospitals$3,354$4,368 – $5,690: 25 hospitals$5,690 – $7,411: 21 hospitals$5,690$7,411 – $9,652: 35 hospitals$7,411median $3,159price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (358 of 396 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$687$89514
$895$1,16537
$1,165$1,51837
$1,518$1,97750
$1,977$2,57524
$2,575$3,35451
$3,354$4,36864
$4,368$5,69025
$5,690$7,41121
$7,411$9,65235

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$3,343
Median cash price$3,159
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.95×

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 $3,159.

Alaska: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMEVermont: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNHWashington: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureIDMontana: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMTNorth Dakota: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNDMinnesota: median $4,765 across 15 hospitalsMN$4,765Illinois: median $1,460 across 15 hospitalsIL$1,460Wisconsin: median $3,340 across 24 hospitalsWI$3,340Michigan: median $1,690 across 26 hospitalsMI$1,690New York: median $3,840 across 28 hospitalsNY$3,840Massachusetts: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMAOregon: median $2,117 across 13 hospitalsOR$2,117Nevada: 3 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 $1,562 across 17 hospitalsIA$1,562Indiana: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: median $2,047 across 16 hospitalsOH$2,047Pennsylvania: median $2,382 across 20 hospitalsPA$2,382New Jersey: median $4,330 across 29 hospitalsNJ$4,330Connecticut: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $8,770 across 31 hospitalsCA$8,770Utah: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureUTColorado: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWVVirginia: 2 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: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAZNew Mexico: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNMKansas: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKSArkansas: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTNNorth Carolina: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNCSouth Carolina: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $1,054 across 14 hospitalsOK$1,054Louisiana: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMSAlabama: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $3,346 across 22 hospitalsTX$3,346Florida: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureFL
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $3,159. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
California CA31$8,770+178%$3,401 – $8,770
Minnesota MN15$4,765+51%$2,656 – $4,765
New Jersey NJ29$4,330+37%$3,591 – $5,339
New York NY28$3,840+22%$1,031 – $3,884
Texas TX22$3,346+6%$3,346 – $3,346
Wisconsin WI24$3,340+6%$3,159 – $3,340
Pennsylvania PA20$2,382−25%$399 – $5,486
Oregon OR13$2,117−33%$1,191 – $2,117
Ohio OH16$2,047−35%$1,211 – $2,904
Michigan MI26$1,690−47%$1,690 – $3,340
Iowa IA17$1,562−51%$1,562 – $1,562
Illinois IL15$1,460−54%$1,213 – $2,031
Oklahoma OK14$1,054−67%$1,054 – $6,615
Idaho ID9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Florida FL7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maine ME3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
West Virginia WV3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Georgia GA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Virginia VA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alaska AK1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Mexico NM1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Dakota SD1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Utah UT1not 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 $3,159.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care290$3,346$1,191 – $5,419
Children’s17fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access89$2,390$1,242 – $4,159
Ownership
For-profit42$3,401$1,242 – $7,155
Government61$1,883$1,114 – $3,872
Non-profit293$3,340$1,211 – $4,765
System affiliation
Part of a system308$3,340$1,242 – $5,419
Independent88$2,047$1,117 – $4,720

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$3,379
Median cash price$3,159
Cash as a share of list, median hospital65%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 35%. 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

215 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $2,390 and the average of the middle 60% is $2,581; most fall between $1,155 and $4,765.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 215 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
$908$1,237$2,390$3,603$8,770

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 9.7× what the cheapest tenth charges ($908 vs $8,770).

Of the 236 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 215 gave a usable cash price; 15 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 6 a list price only.

How complete is this

396 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 442 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted396
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here38
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded0
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded0
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded8
Hospitals that filed this code442

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 Arthrs Knee Drilling Osteochond Dissecans Lesion.

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, “Knee arthroscopy with drilling of a cartilage lesion (CPT 29886) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-29886-knee-arthroscopy-with-drilling-of-a-cartilage-lesion