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Opening A Forefoot Joint To Drain Or Explore

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 28022

Opens a joint in the forefoot surgically to look inside, wash out infection, or take out a loose fragment of bone or cartilage or a foreign object. It is used when imaging or a needle drainage is not enough to clear or identify the problem. The joint is closed afterwards and usually protected in a stiff-soled shoe or boot.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Opening A Forefoot Joint To Drain Or Explore cost?

$2,381

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

Insurers have agreed to pay about $2,381 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $603 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,778 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$603$407 to $891
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,778$933 to $3,020

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,778 · 10th to 90th $513 to $5,370Professionalmedian $603 · 10th to 90th $288 to $1,175
$500$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $1,778professional $603

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

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$316.23
Median
$467.74
Typical High
$7,585.78
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$316.23
Median
$467.74
Typical High
$549.54
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,202.26
Median
$1,862.09
Typical High
$4,786.30
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$288.40
Median
$691.83
Typical High
$1,202.26
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$2,187.76
Typical High
$3,235.94
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$380.19
Median
$467.74
Typical High
$977.24
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$645.65
Median
$645.65
Typical High
$1,148.15
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$512.86
Median
$977.24
Typical High
$2,398.83
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$457.09
Median
$562.34
Typical High
$831.76
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$851.14
Median
$1,698.24
Typical High
$8,709.64
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$302.00
Median
$467.74
Typical High
$977.24
8 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
$158.49
Median
$223.87
Typical High
$239.88
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$63.10
Median
$89.13
Typical High
$95.50
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$239.88
Median
$338.84
Typical High
$363.08
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
55 · Aftercare only
Typical Low
$47.86
Median
$67.61
Typical High
$72.44
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$31.62
Median
$44.67
Typical High
$47.86
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
78 · Unplanned return to OR
Typical Low
$223.87
Median
$316.23
Typical High
$338.84
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$263.03
Median
$489.78
Typical High
$1,698.24
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$229.09
Median
$281.84
Typical High
$575.44

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 5.3 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

North Carolina· 28th of 51

$2,381

$603 physician + $1,778 facility

CO $6,378MT $1,213

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.