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Application Of Skull Tongs Or Head Frame

New Mexico rates for HCPCS 20660

Attaches tongs or a frame to the skull to hold the head and neck steady. Removing the device later is part of this same service. It is provided on its own, not together with a related operation.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Application Of Skull Tongs Or Head Frame cost?

$1,342

Typical total for the visit. In New Mexico, October 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $1,342 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $295 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,047 to the hospital or surgery center where it takes place. Done somewhere without a facility charge, you pay only the first.

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 6 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$295$251 to $363
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,047$603 to $1,778

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,047 · 10th to 90th $537 to $3,715Professionalmedian $295 · 10th to 90th $214 to $417
$50$100$200$500$1K$2K$5Kfacility $1,047professional $295

Distribution of negotiated rates across all payers (price axis is log-scale). Small sample; interpret with caution. Need provider-level prices or 24+ months of history? Contact us.

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$239.88
Median
$1,380.38
Typical High
$7,762.47
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$234.42
Median
$323.59
Typical High
$323.59
BCBS New Mexico
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$223.87
Median
$295.12
Typical High
$338.84
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$1,023.29
Typical High
$1,412.54
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$229.09
Median
$288.40
Typical High
$426.58
Molina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$33.11
Median
$70.79
Typical High
$354.81
Providence
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$239.88
Median
$707.95
Typical High
$1,479.11
Providence
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$239.88
Median
$288.40
Typical High
$457.09
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$575.44
Median
$1,174.90
Typical High
$4,570.88
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$218.78
Median
$331.13
Typical High
$436.52
5 more rates with less common billing modifiers

A modifier changes what was billed, for example a reduced or repeated service. Each of these modifiers carries under 10% of the published rates for this code. Modifier combinations, and modifiers with fewer than 30 rates for a carrier, are not listed.

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
52 · Reduced service
Typical Low
$117.49
Median
$162.18
Typical High
$162.18
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$46.77
Median
$64.57
Typical High
$64.57
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$173.78
Median
$239.88
Typical High
$239.88
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
55 · Aftercare only
Typical Low
$35.48
Median
$48.98
Typical High
$48.98
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$23.44
Median
$32.36
Typical High
$32.36

Where New Mexico sits

The same service costs 6.2 times more in Colorado than in Montana. 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.

Physician feeFacility fee

New Mexico· 39th of 51

$1,342

$295 physician + $1,047 facility

CO $4,689MT $752

Median negotiated rate in each state, from every insurer that publishes one. States where no insurer publishes a rate for this service are not shown.