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Procedure price report · Lens and cataract procedures

Replacement of an artificial eye lens

CPT 66986the billing code this page is about

Surgery to remove an artificial lens already in the eye and put a different one in its place.

Hospitals typically charge $2,757 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 451 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $3,336. Most fall between $1,446 and $5,741 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
451
States
46
Filings dated
Mar 2023 – Sep 2026
Computed
September 25, 2026
Prices checked
through September 24, 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 451 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
$1,264$1,606$2,757$5,599$9,500

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 7.5× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,264 vs $9,500).

How the prices are spread

$937 – $1,205: 21 hospitals$937$1,205 – $1,550: 67 hospitals$1,550 – $1,994: 26 hospitals$1,550$1,994 – $2,564: 59 hospitals$2,564 – $3,299: 52 hospitals$2,564$3,299 – $4,243: 24 hospitals$4,243 – $5,458: 57 hospitals$4,243$5,458 – $7,021: 53 hospitals$7,021 – $9,031: 24 hospitals$7,021$9,031 – $11,617: 24 hospitals$9,031median $2,757price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (407 of 451 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$937$1,20521
$1,205$1,55067
$1,550$1,99426
$1,994$2,56459
$2,564$3,29952
$3,299$4,24324
$4,243$5,45857
$5,458$7,02153
$7,021$9,03124
$9,031$11,61724

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$2,358
Median cash price$2,757
Cash as a multiple of Medicare1.17×

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 $2,757.

Alaska: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureAKMaine: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceMEVermont: 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: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWAIdaho: median $5,599 across 10 hospitalsID$5,599Montana: 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 $4,680 across 16 hospitalsMN$4,680Illinois: median $2,079 across 17 hospitalsIL$2,079Wisconsin: median $5,698 across 27 hospitalsWI$5,698Michigan: median $1,399 across 27 hospitalsMI$1,399New York: median $2,739 across 41 hospitalsNY$2,739Massachusetts: 2 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMAOregon: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureORNevada: 1 hospital 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 $2,252 across 19 hospitalsIA$2,252Indiana: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureINOhio: median $3,188 across 10 hospitalsOH$3,188Pennsylvania: median $1,319 across 19 hospitalsPA$1,319New Jersey: median $2,986 across 24 hospitalsNJ$2,986Connecticut: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCTRhode Island: no hospital in the corpus filed a usable priceRICalifornia: median $4,604 across 45 hospitalsCA$4,604Utah: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureUTColorado: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureCONebraska: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNEMissouri: median $4,676 across 11 hospitalsMO$4,676Kentucky: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureKYWest Virginia: median $1,661 across 14 hospitalsWV$1,661Virginia: 6 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: 4 hospitals 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: 3 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureARTennessee: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureTNNorth Carolina: 4 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureNCSouth Carolina: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSCOklahoma: median $1,463 across 12 hospitalsOK$1,463Louisiana: 5 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: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureGAHawaii: 1 hospital filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $4,607 across 25 hospitalsTX$4,607Florida: median $4,270 across 10 hospitalsFL$4,270
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $2,757. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
Wisconsin WI27$5,698+107%$2,525 – $5,698
Idaho ID10$5,599+103%$2,757 – $5,599
Minnesota MN16$4,680+70%$2,503 – $5,491
Missouri MO11$4,676+70%$1,418 – $6,641
Texas TX25$4,607+67%$2,727 – $5,092
California CA45$4,604+67%$1,404 – $10,209
Florida FL10$4,270+55%$3,188 – $4,270
Ohio OH10$3,188+16%$1,856 – $3,981
New Jersey NJ24$2,986+8%$2,524 – $5,419
New York NY41$2,739−1%$2,379 – $4,595
Iowa IA19$2,252−18%$2,252 – $3,935
Illinois IL17$2,079−25%$1,121 – $15,149
West Virginia WV14$1,661−40%$840 – $5,893
Oklahoma OK12$1,463−47%$1,463 – $1,463
Michigan MI27$1,399−49%$1,399 – $3,173
Pennsylvania PA19$1,319−52%$545 – $3,856
Colorado CO9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Georgia GA9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Indiana IN8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Oregon OR7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Tennessee TN7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Washington WA7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nebraska NE6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
South Carolina SC6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Virginia VA6not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kansas KS5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Louisiana LA5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Montana MT5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
New Hampshire NH5not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arizona AZ4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Kentucky KY4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Carolina NC4not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Alabama AL3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Arkansas AR3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
North Dakota ND3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Utah UT3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT3not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Massachusetts MA2not 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
Connecticut CT1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Hawaii HI1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Mississippi MS1not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Nevada NV1not 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 $2,757.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care362$2,832$1,463 – $6,311
Children’s7fewer than 20 hospitals
Critical access82$2,675$1,399 – $5,698
Ownership
For-profit48$3,539$1,463 – $6,659
Government59$2,699$1,595 – $4,270
Non-profit344$2,830$1,404 – $6,010
System affiliation
Part of a system373$3,173$1,446 – $5,893
Independent78$2,394$1,467 – $4,631

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$4,227
Median cash price$2,757
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

247 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $2,464 and the average of the middle 60% is $3,190; most fall between $1,404 and $6,294.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 247 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
$1,121$1,418$2,464$5,698$10,209

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 9.1× what the cheapest tenth charges ($1,121 vs $10,209).

Of the 261 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 247 gave a usable cash price; 8 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

451 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (11%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 491 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted451
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here31
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded0
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded3
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded6
Hospitals that filed this code491

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 24, 2026; the figures were computed September 25, 2026 from filings loaded through September 24, 2026. The percentiles and averages use only the “counted” row.

Related procedures

Part of the Lens and cataract procedures family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Exchange Intraocular Lens.

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, “Replacement of an artificial eye lens (CPT 66986) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-66986-replacement-of-an-artificial-eye-lens