Fitting A Halo To The Skull

Nationwide rates for HCPCS 20661

Fits a halo, a rigid metal ring anchored to the skull with pins, to hold the head and neck completely still while bone or ligaments heal. The service covers putting the halo on and taking it off again later. It is used after a neck fracture, a spinal operation, or an unstable neck injury.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Fitting A Halo To The Skull cost?

$5,000

Typical total for the visit. Nationwide, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $5,000 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $832 to the doctor who performs it, and $4,169 to the hospital or surgery center where it takes place. Done somewhere without a facility charge, you pay only the first.

17% physician fee83% facility fee

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 53 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the bill	Who charges it	Typical	Range
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it	The doctor who performs it	$832	$631 to $1,202
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center	The hospital or surgery center	$4,169	$1,445 to $7,413

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $4,169 · 10th to 90th $661 to $10,965Professionalmedian $832 · 10th to 90th $525 to $1,950

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 Low	Median	Typical High
Aetna Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $794.33 Median $4,073.80 Typical High $10,964.78	Facility	Global	$794.33	$4,073.80	$10,964.78
BCBS Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $2,570.40 Median $6,309.57 Typical High $12,589.25	Facility	Global	$2,570.40	$6,309.57	$12,589.25
Cigna Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $512.86 Median $1,174.90 Typical High $4,168.69	Facility	Global	$512.86	$1,174.90	$4,168.69
United Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $338.84 Median $1,288.25 Typical High $3,981.07	Facility	Global	$338.84	$1,288.25	$3,981.07

What it costs in each state

The same service costs 11.8 times more in Nebraska than in Maryland. 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

Touch or drag across the chart to see any state's rate.

NE $8,393MD $709

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.