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External Frame With Computer-Guided Adjustment

North Dakota rates for HCPCS 20696

An external frame is attached to a limb by pins and wires passed through the bone in more than one direction, holding the bone from outside the skin. A computer program then works out a schedule of small daily adjustments to the frame, gradually moving the bone into the correct position over the following weeks. Imaging and the follow-up adjustment calculations are included.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does External Frame With Computer-Guided Adjustment cost?

$4,234

Typical total for the visit. In North Dakota, October 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $4,234 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $2,239 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,995 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 5 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$2,239$1,862 to $2,512
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,995$1,175 to $3,020

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,995 · 10th to 90th $1,175 to $3,236Professionalmedian $2,239 · 10th to 90th $1,230 to $2,884
$100$200$500$1K$2K$5Kfacility $1,995professional $2,239

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
$1,174.90
Median
$1,174.90
Typical High
$5,011.87
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,148.15
Median
$1,174.90
Typical High
$1,698.24
BCBS North Dakota
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,862.09
Median
$2,398.83
Typical High
$2,818.38
BCBS North Dakota
Setting
Professional
Modifier
22 · Increased work
Typical Low
$2,238.72
Median
$2,884.03
Typical High
$3,388.44
BCBS North Dakota
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$1,318.26
Median
$1,698.24
Typical High
$1,995.26
BCBS North Dakota
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$186.21
Median
$239.88
Typical High
$281.84
BCBS North Dakota
Setting
Professional
Modifier
78 · Unplanned return to OR
Typical Low
$1,412.54
Median
$1,819.70
Typical High
$2,137.96
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,949.84
Median
$1,949.84
Typical High
$2,238.72
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,202.26
Median
$2,398.83
Typical High
$3,548.13
Medica
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,174.90
Median
$1,995.26
Typical High
$3,235.94
Medica
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,230.27
Median
$2,187.76
Typical High
$3,019.95
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,995.26
Median
$3,019.95
Typical High
$3,235.94
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,230.27
Median
$2,187.76
Typical High
$2,398.83

Where North Dakota sits

The same service costs 8.5 times more in Wyoming than in Kentucky. 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

North Dakota· 40th of 51

$4,234

$2,239 physician + $1,995 facility

WY $22,644KY $2,656

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.