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Telescope Removal of a Kidney or Ureter Stone

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 52353

A slim telescope is passed up through the urethra and bladder into the ureter, and sometimes on into the kidney, until the stone is in view. Energy delivered through the scope — usually a laser fiber — breaks the stone into fragments small enough to be picked out or passed naturally. Nothing is cut on the outside; a temporary internal drainage tube is often left afterwards and is billed separately.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Telescope Removal of a Kidney or Ureter Stone cost?

$3,651

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

Insurers have agreed to pay about $3,651 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $631 to the doctor who performs it, and $3,020 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$631$525 to $1,047
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$3,020$1,622 to $4,571

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $3,020 · 10th to 90th $617 to $8,318Professionalmedian $631 · 10th to 90th $417 to $1,259
$500$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $3,020professional $631

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
$380.19
Median
$512.86
Typical High
$8,128.31
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$380.19
Median
$389.05
Typical High
$794.33
Ambetter
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$467.74
Median
$549.54
Typical High
$691.83
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,995.26
Median
$2,884.03
Typical High
$3,981.07
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$524.81
Median
$831.76
Typical High
$1,258.93
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$794.33
Median
$3,715.35
Typical High
$5,370.32
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$489.78
Median
$549.54
Typical High
$1,047.13
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$707.95
Median
$1,698.24
Typical High
$3,801.89
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$457.09
Median
$588.84
Typical High
$1,513.56
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,202.26
Median
$3,388.44
Typical High
$15,848.93
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$389.05
Median
$537.03
Typical High
$954.99
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
$190.55
Median
$190.55
Typical High
$234.42
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$75.86
Median
$75.86
Typical High
$95.50
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$281.84
Median
$281.84
Typical High
$354.81
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
55 · Aftercare only
Typical Low
$57.54
Median
$57.54
Typical High
$70.79
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$38.02
Median
$38.02
Typical High
$47.86
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
50 · Both sides
Typical Low
$1,096.48
Median
$2,511.89
Typical High
$7,762.47
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$363.08
Median
$851.14
Typical High
$2,570.40
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
50 · Both sides
Typical Low
$776.25
Median
$1,230.27
Typical High
$2,238.72
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$257.04
Median
$407.38
Typical High
$758.58

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 7.3 times more in Wisconsin 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· 35th of 51

$3,651

$631 physician + $3,020 facility

WI $8,816MT $1,205

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.