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Procedure price report · Other therapeutic procedures, hemic and lymphatic system

Surgical dissection of deep neck vein lymph nodes

CPT 38542the billing code this page is about

Open operation to explore and remove lymph node tissue lying deep along the jugular vein in the neck.

Hospitals typically charge $2,119 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 400 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $3,257. Most fall between $884 and $7,244 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
400
States
47
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 400 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
$662$952$2,119$6,904$14,510

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 22× what the cheapest tenth charges ($662 vs $14,510).

How the prices are spread

$524 – $733: 33 hospitals$524$733 – $1,026: 64 hospitals$1,026 – $1,436: 53 hospitals$1,026$1,436 – $2,010: 21 hospitals$2,010 – $2,814: 29 hospitals$2,010$2,814 – $3,940: 10 hospitals$3,940 – $5,515: 28 hospitals$3,940$5,515 – $7,721: 71 hospitals$7,721 – $10,809: 22 hospitals$7,721$10,809 – $15,131: 30 hospitals$10,809median $2,119price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (361 of 400 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$524$73333
$733$1,02664
$1,026$1,43653
$1,436$2,01021
$2,010$2,81429
$2,814$3,94010
$3,940$5,51528
$5,515$7,72171
$7,721$10,80922
$10,809$15,13130

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$6,176
Median cash price$2,119
Cash as a multiple of Medicare0.34×

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 $2,119.

Alaska: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMEVermont: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNHWashington: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureIDMontana: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMTNorth 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 $1,279 across 17 hospitalsIL$1,279Wisconsin: median $2,119 across 23 hospitalsWI$2,119Michigan: median $920 across 27 hospitalsMI$920New York: median $4,156 across 30 hospitalsNY$4,156Massachusetts: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMAOregon: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureORNevada: 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 $1,279 across 18 hospitalsIA$1,279Indiana: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: median $2,067 across 12 hospitalsOH$2,067Pennsylvania: median $859 across 19 hospitalsPA$859New Jersey: median $6,458 across 29 hospitalsNJ$6,458Connecticut: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $7,244 across 42 hospitalsCA$7,244Utah: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceUTColorado: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMOKentucky: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWVVirginia: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVAMaryland: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMDDelaware: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceDEArizona: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAZNew Mexico: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNMKansas: 5 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKSArkansas: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 6 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: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $865 across 13 hospitalsOK$865Louisiana: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureLAMississippi: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMSAlabama: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureALGeorgia: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $6,224 across 20 hospitalsTX$6,224Florida: median $5,856 across 10 hospitalsFL$5,856
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $2,119. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
California CA42$7,244+242%$4,608 – $14,510
New Jersey NJ29$6,458+205%$5,110 – $7,894
Texas TX20$6,224+194%$5,574 – $6,224
Florida FL10$5,856+176%$2,067 – $18,546
New York NY30$4,156+96%$960 – $6,904
Wisconsin WI23$2,1190%$2,119 – $4,414
Ohio OH12$2,067−2%$1,088 – $2,364
Iowa IA18$1,279−40%$1,266 – $1,279
Illinois IL17$1,279−40%$698 – $4,864
Michigan MI27$920−57%$773 – $2,119
Oklahoma OK13$865−59%$865 – $11,895
Pennsylvania PA19$859−59%$324 – $9,864
Georgia GA9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
West Virginia WV9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Idaho ID8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Oregon OR7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Colorado CO6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Minnesota MN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Missouri MO6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Virginia VA5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Massachusetts MA2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maryland MD2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maine ME2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Mexico NM2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY2not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alaska AK1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Connecticut CT1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS1not 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 $2,119.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care325$3,103$920 – $7,559
Children’s7fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access67$1,182$773 – $4,414
Ownership
For-profit44$6,224$773 – $15,131
Government55$1,513$928 – $6,904
Non-profit300$2,067$884 – $7,244
System affiliation
Part of a system326$2,119$883 – $7,559
Independent74$1,294$910 – $5,856

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$1,993
Median cash price$2,119
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

235 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $1,471 and the average of the middle 60% is $2,327; most fall between $865 and $6,547.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 235 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
$698$928$1,471$6,224$14,510

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 21× what the cheapest tenth charges ($698 vs $14,510).

Of the 255 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 235 gave a usable cash price; 19 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 1 a list price only.

How complete is this

400 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 444 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted400
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here41
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 — excluded2
Hospitals that filed this code444

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 therapeutic procedures, hemic and lymphatic system family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Dissection Deep Jugular Node.

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, “Surgical dissection of deep neck vein lymph nodes (CPT 38542) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-38542-surgical-dissection-of-deep-neck-vein-lymph-nodes