go back

Cutting A Cranial Nerve At The Skull Base

South Dakota rates for HCPCS 61460

Opens the skull at the base of the back of the head to reach the nerves emerging from the brainstem, and deliberately divides one or more of them. Cutting the nerve stops the signals it carries, which is done to relieve severe pain or uncontrollable activity that has not responded to medication. It is major neurosurgery under general anesthesia with a hospital stay.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Cutting A Cranial Nerve At The Skull Base cost?

$5,669

Typical total for the visit. In South Dakota, October 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $5,669 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $4,467 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,202 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 7 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$4,467$3,236 to $5,012
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,202$759 to $2,754

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,202 · 10th to 90th $759 to $3,548Professionalmedian $4,467 · 10th to 90th $2,089 to $5,370
$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $1,202professional $4,467

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

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,995.26
Median
$1,995.26
Typical High
$4,365.16
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,621.81
Median
$1,621.81
Typical High
$1,905.46
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,818.38
Median
$2,818.38
Typical High
$3,548.13
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$3,981.07
Median
$4,570.88
Typical High
$5,623.41
Medica
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$758.58
Median
$2,344.23
Typical High
$3,467.37
Medica
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,905.46
Median
$5,248.07
Typical High
$14,791.08
Midlands
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$4,570.88
Median
$4,570.88
Typical High
$4,786.30
Midlands
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$4,365.16
Median
$4,365.16
Typical High
$4,365.16
Sanford Health Plan
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,691.53
Median
$3,548.13
Typical High
$4,168.69
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$758.58
Median
$758.58
Typical High
$1,202.26
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,905.46
Median
$4,786.30
Typical High
$5,370.32
Wellmark
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$4,073.80
Median
$5,011.87
Typical High
$5,011.87

Where South Dakota sits

The same service costs 14.0 times more in Maine than in Texas. 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

South Dakota· 23rd of 51

$5,669

$4,467 physician + $1,202 facility

ME $35,243TX $2,509

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.