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Sinus Surgery to Open the Cheek Sinus

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 31256

Using a thin telescope passed up the nostril, the surgeon enlarges the natural drainage opening of the maxillary sinus, the air pocket behind the cheek, so mucus can escape and the sinus can ventilate properly. No cuts are made on the face. It is used for repeated or long-standing sinus infection that has not settled with medication.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Sinus Surgery to Open the Cheek Sinus cost?

$2,378

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

Insurers have agreed to pay about $2,378 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $288 to the doctor who performs it, and $2,089 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 6 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$288$204 to $479
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$2,089$1,000 to $3,020

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $2,089 · 10th to 90th $490 to $5,248Professionalmedian $288 · 10th to 90th $186 to $562
$200$500$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $2,089professional $288

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
$173.78
Median
$239.88
Typical High
$7,943.28
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$173.78
Median
$173.78
Typical High
$331.13
Ambetter
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$85.11
Median
$85.11
Typical High
$85.11
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,621.81
Median
$2,398.83
Typical High
$3,235.94
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$186.21
Median
$389.05
Typical High
$575.44
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$645.65
Median
$2,290.87
Typical High
$3,388.44
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$223.87
Median
$257.04
Typical High
$478.63
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$446.68
Median
$977.24
Typical High
$3,162.28
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$208.93
Median
$281.84
Typical High
$389.05
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$851.14
Median
$1,905.46
Typical High
$8,709.64
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$177.83
Median
$251.19
Typical High
$457.09
9 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
$87.10
Median
$87.10
Typical High
$107.15
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$35.48
Median
$35.48
Typical High
$42.66
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$131.83
Median
$131.83
Typical High
$158.49
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
55 · Aftercare only
Typical Low
$26.30
Median
$26.30
Typical High
$31.62
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$17.38
Median
$17.38
Typical High
$21.38
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
50 · Both sides
Typical Low
$891.25
Median
$1,862.09
Typical High
$4,786.30
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$295.12
Median
$616.60
Typical High
$1,584.89
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
50 · Both sides
Typical Low
$354.81
Median
$457.09
Typical High
$758.58
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$117.49
Median
$151.36
Typical High
$257.04

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 11.3 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· 27th of 51

$2,378

$288 physician + $2,089 facility

CO $6,151MT $545

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.