Orthopedic surgery · District of Columbia

Orthopedic surgery commercial reimbursement in District of Columbia

How District of Columbia orthopedic surgery rates compare with the national market.

Orthopedic surgery in District of Columbia

39 codes · 35 sampled providers
Index vs national
130
30% above
Rank among states
7 of 51
1 = highest
Codes above national
39 of 39
median code at 130%
Providers
35
sampled

What the data shows

1

Orthopedic surgery ranks 7th of 51 states in District of Columbia with an index of 130 (100 = the specialty's national median), across 39 codes and 35 sampled providers.

2

Of the 39 orthopedic surgery codes with enough data in District of Columbia, 39 pay above the national median and 0 below; the typical code sits at 130% of the national median.

3

Largest premium over the national median: CPT 99203 (Office o/p new low 30 min) at 149%; largest discount: CPT 72110 (X-ray exam l-2 spine 4/>vws) at 112%.

4

Measured against Medicare, District of Columbia orthopedic surgery rates have a median of 191% of the Medicare rate across these codes.

Codes above and below the national median

The five largest gaps in each direction

Highest vs national

CodeDistrict oNationalGapProv.
99203
Office o/p new low 30 min
$183$123+49%35
72148
Mri lumbar spine w/o dye
$541$370+46%35
99215
Office o/p est hi 40 min
$265$185+43%35
99204
Office o/p new mod 45 min
$277$194+43%35
99214
Office o/p est mod 30 min
$184$132+40%35

Lowest vs national

CodeDistrict oNationalGapProv.
72110
X-ray exam l-2 spine 4/>vws
$79$71+12%35
26055
Incise finger tendon sheath
$698$614+14%35
72100
X-ray exam l-s spine 2/3 vws
$61$53+15%35
73221
Mri joint upr extrem w/o dye
$449$387+16%35
73721
Mri jnt of lwr extre w/o dye
$452$387+17%35

All orthopedic surgery codes in District of Columbia

Median across payers vs the specialty's national median and the Medicare rate; sorted by premium
CodeDistrict of NationalGap% of MedicareProvidersTINsLevel
CPT 99203
Office o/p new low 30 min
$183$123+49%156%3545
CPT 72148
Mri lumbar spine w/o dye
$541$370+46%282%3543
CPT 99215
Office o/p est hi 40 min
$265$185+43%138%3544
CPT 99204
Office o/p new mod 45 min
$277$194+43%156%3545
CPT 99214
Office o/p est mod 30 min
$184$132+40%136%3545
CPT 99205
Office o/p new hi 60 min
$349$252+39%147%3544
CPT 29848
Wrist endoscopy/surgery
$1,124$817+38%231%3542
CPT 97110
Therapeutic exercises
$43$31+37%148%3543
CPT 20550
Njx 1 tendon sheath/ligament
$100$74+35%165%3543
CPT 29827
Sho arthrs srg rt8tr cuf rpr
$2,291$1,701+35%235%3544
CPT 27245
Treat thigh fracture
$2,679$1,994+34%240%3544
CPT 27236
Treat thigh fracture
$2,553$1,918+33%234%3543
CPT 23472
Reconstruct shoulder joint
$3,074$2,318+33%236%3544
CPT 22612
Arthrd pst tq 1ntrspc lumbar
$3,386$2,557+32%231%3544
CPT 22558
Arthrd ant ntrbd min dsc lum
$3,256$2,471+32%229%3544
CPT 22551
Arthrd ant ntrbdy cervical
$3,651$2,778+31%227%3544
CPT 64721
Carpal tunnel surgery
$920$700+31%191%3544
CPT 99212
Office o/p est sf 10 min
$67$51+31%113%3544
CPT 27487
Revise/replace knee joint
$3,720$2,840+31%236%3542
CPT 63047
Lam facetec & foramot lumbar
$2,337$1,796+30%219%3544
CPT 22633
Arthrd cmbn 1ntrspc lumbar
$3,875$2,991+30%228%3544
CPT 99213
Office o/p est low 20 min
$116$91+28%122%3545
CPT 27130
Total hip arthroplasty
$2,735$2,158+27%235%3544
CPT 27447
Total knee arthroplasty
$2,730$2,190+25%235%3544
CPT 20610
Drain/inj joint/bursa w/o us
$106$85+24%154%3544
CPT 93000
Electrocardiogram complete
$31$25+23%203%3543
CPT 73610
X-ray exam of ankle
$57$47+21%154%3543
CPT 73502
X-ray exam hip uni 2-3 views
$72$60+20%148%3544
CPT 73564
X-ray exam knee 4 or more
$72$60+20%145%3543
CPT 20611
Drain/inj joint/bursa w/us
$139$117+19%277%3544
CPT 73630
X-ray exam of foot
$53$44+19%155%3543
CPT 73562
X-ray exam of knee 3
$63$53+18%148%3543
CPT 73560
X-ray exam of knee 1 or 2
$53$45+18%154%3543
CPT 73030
X-ray exam of shoulder
$53$45+18%149%3544
CPT 73721
Mri jnt of lwr extre w/o dye
$452$387+17%221%3543
CPT 73221
Mri joint upr extrem w/o dye
$449$387+16%219%3544
CPT 72100
X-ray exam l-s spine 2/3 vws
$61$53+15%152%3544
CPT 26055
Incise finger tendon sheath
$698$614+14%243%3544
CPT 72110
X-ray exam l-2 spine 4/>vws
$79$71+12%148%3543

Frequently asked questions

How do District of Columbia orthopedic surgery rates compare with the rest of the country?

District of Columbia ranks 7th of 51 states with an index of 130; 39 of 39 codes are above the national median.

Which orthopedic surgery code has the biggest premium in District of Columbia?

CPT 99203 (Office o/p new low 30 min), at 149% of the national median.

Are these Medicare or commercial rates?

Commercial in-network negotiated rates from four national payers' published files; the Medicare comparison column uses the CY2026 Medicare physician fee schedule.

Methodology

How these numbers are calculated
  • Source: in-network negotiated-rate files published under the federal Transparency in Coverage rule, August 2026 snapshot: UnitedHealthcare Choice plans (74 files); Aetna commercial plans (70 files); Cigna national PPO (1 files); BCBS licensees' own-network files (5,387 files). Payer comparisons describe these files, not each payer's entire book of business.
  • Sample: rates come from a random sample of up to 150 providers per state and specialty. Counts on this page are sampled providers and TINs, not totals.
  • Which providers count: only providers in a specialty relevant to the code, because a rate in a payer file attaches to a provider group and is listed under every provider in that group.
  • Filters: fee-for-service, professional billing class, no modifier, negotiated or fee-schedule dollar rates. Rates outside 1% to 1,000% of the Medicare rate are excluded.
  • Statistic: one median rate per provider, then percentiles across providers. A cell is shown only with at least 15 sampled providers and 4 TINs.
  • Medicare benchmark: CY2026 national physician fee schedule, non-QPP conversion factor, unadjusted for locality. Where the non-facility rate is more than twice the facility rate (office rates that include device or supply cost), the facility rate is used so comparisons are like for like.

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