A surgeon places a soft, flexible tube-like implant inside the eye to create a new drainage channel for fluid, helping to lower eye pressure in people with glaucoma. It's placed through a very small opening without a large incision, and unlike some other minimally invasive glaucoma implants, it's often positioned to drain fluid to just beneath the surface tissue of the eye rather than into a deeper internal space. It's typically used for glaucoma that hasn't been well controlled with eye drops alone.
Rates data updated July 2026.
How much does Glaucoma Drainage Gel Implant Placement cost?
$871
Typical physician fee. In Washington, DC, July 2026.
Insurers have agreed to pay about $871 for this service. Most negotiated rates run $813 to $3,981.
These are rates insurers have negotiated with providers, not the amount a patient is billed. What you owe depends on your plan's deductible and coinsurance. Based on rates published by 4 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.
How much rates vary
Facilitymedian $4,169 · 10th to 90th $871 to $7,762Professionalmedian $871 · 10th to 90th $447 to $871
Distribution of negotiated rates across all payers (price axis is log-scale). Each curve is scaled to its own total: facility and professional rates are different services, shown together to compare where they cluster. Need provider-level prices or 24+ months of history? Contact us.
Rates by insurance carrier
Insurance Carrier
Facility/Professional
Modifier
Typical LowTypical Low is the 10th percentile of the published rates, Median the 50th, and Typical High the 90th. One in ten rates falls below Typical Low, and one in ten falls above Typical High.
MedianTypical Low is the 10th percentile of the published rates, Median the 50th, and Typical High the 90th. One in ten rates falls below Typical Low, and one in ten falls above Typical High.
Typical HighTypical Low is the 10th percentile of the published rates, Median the 50th, and Typical High the 90th. One in ten rates falls below Typical Low, and one in ten falls above Typical High.
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$870.96
Median
$4,073.80
Typical High
$7,762.47
Facility
Global
$870.96
$4,073.80
$7,762.47
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$446.68
Median
$831.76
Typical High
$870.96
Professional
Global
$446.68
$831.76
$870.96
CareFirst
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$831.76
Median
$933.25
Typical High
$1,122.02
Professional
Global
$831.76
$933.25
$1,122.02
Kaiser Permanente
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$851.14
Median
$977.24
Typical High
$1,778.28
Professional
Global
$851.14
$977.24
$1,778.28
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$4,073.80
Median
$13,182.57
Typical High
$31,622.78
Facility
Global
$4,073.80
$13,182.57
$31,622.78
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$630.96
Median
$831.76
Typical High
$2,089.30
Professional
Global
$630.96
$831.76
$2,089.30
Where Washington, DC sits
The same service costs 7.2 times more in California than in North Dakota. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Touch or drag across it to read any state, then open that state for its carriers and full range.