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Tendon Lengthening or Shortening, Lower Leg/Ankle

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 27685

Surgery to adjust the length of a single tendon in the lower leg or ankle, either lengthening a tight tendon or shortening a stretched one, to improve movement and correct muscle imbalance. It's often used to treat conditions that cause abnormal walking patterns or joint positioning.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Tendon Lengthening or Shortening, Lower Leg/Ankle cost?

$1,699

Typical total for the visit. In North Carolina, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $1,699 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $676 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,023 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 7 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$676$525 to $977
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,023$646 to $4,467

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,023 · 10th to 90th $457 to $6,607Professionalmedian $676 · 10th to 90th $457 to $1,445
$1$10$100$1K$10Kfacility $1,023professional $676

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
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$457.09
Median
$1,659.59
Typical High
$6,606.93
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$436.52
Median
$645.65
Typical High
$1,288.25
Ambetter
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$79.43
Median
$288.40
Typical High
$758.58
BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2,511.89
Median
$2,511.89
Typical High
$2,511.89
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$562.34
Median
$831.76
Typical High
$1,737.80
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$776.25
Typical High
$2,818.38
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
AS · PA/NP assist
Typical Low
$77.62
Median
$77.62
Typical High
$77.62
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$524.81
Median
$776.25
Typical High
$1,380.38
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$912.01
Median
$912.01
Typical High
$1,548.82
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$478.63
Median
$707.95
Typical High
$1,148.15
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2,630.27
Median
$8,709.64
Typical High
$14,791.08
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$416.87
Median
$630.96
Typical High
$1,230.27
Wellcare
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$9,332.54
Median
$9,332.54
Typical High
$45,708.82
Wellcare
Setting
Facility
Modifier
AS · PA/NP assist
Typical Low
$933.25
Median
$933.25
Typical High
$933.25
Wellcare
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$4,786.30
Median
$4,786.30
Typical High
$5,495.41

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 9.2 times more in Maine 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.

Physician feeFacility fee

North Carolina· 48th of 50

$1,699

$676 physician + $1,023 facility

ME $14,166ND $1,547

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.