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Knee Cartilage Repair With Your Own Bone Plugs

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 29866

A knee arthroscopy procedure that repairs a damaged patch of joint cartilage by transplanting small plugs of healthy bone and cartilage taken from a less weight-bearing area of the patient's own knee. The plugs are harvested and inserted through small camera-guided incisions in the same operation, filling the damaged area with living tissue rather than scar tissue. It is used for a focal area of cartilage damage rather than widespread arthritis.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Knee Cartilage Repair With Your Own Bone Plugs cost?

$1,622

Typical negotiated rate. In North Carolina, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $1,622 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $1,585 from a physician practice, and about $1,738 from a hospital or other facility. The two figures are alternatives, not parts of one bill.

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.

Where it's billed changes the price

Billed byTypicalRange
Physician practiceA doctor's office, clinic or independent provider$1,585$1,072 to $2,089
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$1,738$1,288 to $6,918

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,738 · 10th to 90th $1,023 to $13,804Professionalmedian $1,585 · 10th to 90th $1,023 to $2,951
$200.0$500.0$1.0K$2.0K$5.0K$10.0K$20.0Kfacility $1,738professional $1,585

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
$1,023.29
Median
$3,890.45
Typical High
$9,120.11
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,023.29
Median
$1,202.26
Typical High
$3,019.95
BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$3,715.35
Median
$3,715.35
Typical High
$5,248.07
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,230.27
Median
$1,949.84
Typical High
$2,754.23
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$1,698.24
Typical High
$6,309.57
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,047.13
Median
$1,479.11
Typical High
$2,570.40
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,778.28
Median
$1,778.28
Typical High
$2,454.71
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,023.29
Median
$1,348.96
Typical High
$2,137.96
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$5,495.41
Median
$13,803.84
Typical High
$23,442.29
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$870.96
Median
$1,148.15
Typical High
$2,187.76
Wellcare
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$20,892.96
Median
$20,892.96
Typical High
$33,884.42
Wellcare
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$7,762.47
Median
$7,762.47
Typical High
$9,120.11

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 8.7 times more in California than in Delaware. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Pick one to see its carriers and full range.

North Carolina $1,622 · 24th of 51
CA $9,120DE $1,047

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.