Drainage Tube Placed Around the Heart

Nationwide rates for HCPCS 33017

Drains fluid built up in the sac around the heart by passing a needle and then a small tube through the chest wall, using ultrasound or X-ray to guide it. The tube is left in so fluid can keep draining over the following hours or days. This is the version for older children and adults who do not have a heart problem present from birth.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does Drainage Tube Placed Around the Heart cost?

$5,733

Typical total for the visit. Nationwide, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $5,733 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $363 to the doctor who performs it, and $5,370 to the hospital or surgery center where it takes place. Done somewhere without a facility charge, you pay only the first.

6% physician fee94% facility fee

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 49 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the bill	Who charges it	Typical	Range
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it	The doctor who performs it	$363	$251 to $537
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center	The hospital or surgery center	$5,370	$2,570 to $9,550

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $5,370 · 10th to 90th $537 to $14,125Professionalmedian $363 · 10th to 90th $209 to $933

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	Facility/Professional	Modifier	Typical Low	Median	Typical High
Aetna Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $588.84 Median $6,456.54 Typical High $16,595.87	Facility	Global	$588.84	$6,456.54	$16,595.87
BCBS Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $2,630.27 Median $6,025.60 Typical High $12,589.25	Facility	Global	$2,630.27	$6,025.60	$12,589.25
Cigna Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $380.19 Median $691.83 Typical High $2,187.76	Facility	Global	$380.19	$691.83	$2,187.76
United Setting Facility Modifier Global Typical Low $758.58 Median $3,090.30 Typical High $9,772.37	Facility	Global	$758.58	$3,090.30	$9,772.37

What it costs in each state

The same service costs 9.3 times more in Nebraska than in Maryland. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Pick one to see its carriers and full range.

Physician feeFacility fee

NE $8,493MD $912

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.