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Procedure price report · Other OR therapeutic procedures on respiratory system

Vocal cord repositioning surgery

CPT 31591the billing code this page is about

Open surgery that shifts a weak or paralyzed vocal cord toward the midline, usually with an implant, to improve voice and airway closure.

Hospitals typically charge $5,419 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 336 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $5,369. Most fall between $2,480 and $9,186 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
336
States
43
Filings dated
Dec 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 336 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
$1,476$2,652$5,419$8,140$15,519

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 11× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,476 vs $15,519).

How the prices are spread

$1,390 – $1,805: 24 hospitals$1,390$1,805 – $2,343: 25 hospitals$2,343 – $3,042: 44 hospitals$2,343$3,042 – $3,950: 20 hospitals$3,950 – $5,128: 28 hospitals$3,950$5,128 – $6,658: 51 hospitals$6,658 – $8,644: 52 hospitals$6,658$8,644 – $11,223: 28 hospitals$11,223 – $14,570: 14 hospitals$11,223$14,570 – $18,917: 24 hospitals$14,570median $5,419price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (310 of 336 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$1,390$1,80524
$1,805$2,34325
$2,343$3,04244
$3,042$3,95020
$3,950$5,12828
$5,128$6,65851
$6,658$8,64452
$8,644$11,22328
$11,223$14,57014
$14,570$18,91724

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$6,048
Median cash price$5,419
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.90×

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 $5,419.

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: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureIDMontana: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMTNorth Dakota: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNDMinnesota: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMNIllinois: median $2,600 across 14 hospitalsIL$2,600Wisconsin: median $7,010 across 25 hospitalsWI$7,010Michigan: median $4,995 across 16 hospitalsMI$4,995New York: median $7,000 across 26 hospitalsNY$7,000Massachusetts: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMAOregon: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceORNevada: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNVWyoming: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWYSouth Dakota: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceSDIowa: median $2,657 across 13 hospitalsIA$2,657Indiana: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureOHPennsylvania: median $6,936 across 12 hospitalsPA$6,936New Jersey: median $6,548 across 29 hospitalsNJ$6,548Connecticut: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $18,917 across 43 hospitalsCA$18,917Utah: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceUTColorado: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWVVirginia: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVAMaryland: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMDDelaware: 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: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKSArkansas: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTNNorth Carolina: median $9,654 across 13 hospitalsNC$9,654South Carolina: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $1,476 across 13 hospitalsOK$1,476Louisiana: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMSAlabama: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $5,833 across 35 hospitalsTX$5,833Florida: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureFL
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $5,419. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
California CA43$18,917+249%$2,652 – $18,917
North Carolina NC13$9,654+78%$9,654 – $9,654
Wisconsin WI25$7,010+29%$4,995 – $9,094
New York NY26$7,000+29%$2,110 – $7,027
Pennsylvania PA12$6,936+28%$3,908 – $11,147
New Jersey NJ29$6,548+21%$5,110 – $7,894
Texas TX35$5,833+8%$5,413 – $6,187
Michigan MI16$4,995−8%$1,818 – $8,140
Iowa IA13$2,657−51%$2,657 – $2,657
Illinois IL14$2,600−52%$1,390 – $26,024
Oklahoma OK13$1,476−73%$1,476 – $8,596
Ohio OH9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Florida FL8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Idaho ID7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
West Virginia WV7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Minnesota MN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Virginia VA4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alaska AK1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Connecticut CT1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Georgia GA1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Massachusetts MA1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maryland MD1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Mexico NM1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY1not 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 $5,419.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care294$5,833$2,564 – $9,654
Children’s4fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access37$4,995$1,841 – $9,094
Ownership
For-profit36$5,833$1,476 – $9,394
Government47$7,000$2,175 – $9,654
Non-profit252$5,367$2,622 – $8,654
System affiliation
Part of a system290$5,833$2,622 – $9,186
Independent46$3,239$2,016 – $8,540

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$7,685
Median cash price$5,419
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

211 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $3,357 and the average of the middle 60% is $4,379; most fall between $1,739 and $9,654.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 211 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
$1,390$1,938$3,357$6,383$18,917

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 14× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,390 vs $18,917).

Of the 220 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 211 gave a usable cash price; 5 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 4 a list price only.

How complete is this

336 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (8%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 361 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted336
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here21
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 — excluded3
Hospitals that filed this code361

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 respiratory system family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Laryngoplasty Medialization Unliateral.

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, “Vocal cord repositioning surgery (CPT 31591) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-31591-vocal-cord-repositioning-surgery