go back

Vertebral Body Removal to Free the Spinal Cord

North Carolina rates for HCPCS 63102

Removal of part or all of a vertebral body at one level of the back, taking pressure off the spinal cord and the nerve roots leaving it. It is used when bone, a tumor, an infection, or a collapsed vertebra is pressing on the cord from the front. Restoring support to the spine where the bone was taken out is handled as a separate part of the operation.

Rates data updated October 2026.

How much does Vertebral Body Removal to Free the Spinal Cord cost?

$5,097

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

Insurers have agreed to pay about $5,097 for this procedure. That total is two separate charges: $4,074 to the doctor who performs it, and $1,023 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 5 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

What's inside this number

Part of the billTypicalRange
Physician feeThe doctor who performs it$4,074$2,951 to $4,677
Facility feeThe hospital or surgery center$1,023$575 to $3,467

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,023 · 10th to 90th $380 to $7,244Professionalmedian $4,074 · 10th to 90th $2,239 to $5,495
$200$500$1K$2K$5K$10K$20Kfacility $1,023professional $4,074

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
$1,288.25
Median
$2,187.76
Typical High
$7,943.28
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,187.76
Median
$2,187.76
Typical High
$2,691.53
BCBS North Carolina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,951.21
Median
$4,073.80
Typical High
$5,495.41
Cigna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$478.63
Median
$851.14
Typical High
$29,512.09
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,398.83
Median
$2,511.89
Typical High
$5,495.41
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$3,715.35
Median
$3,715.35
Typical High
$5,248.07
Medcost
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,187.76
Median
$2,630.27
Typical High
$3,890.45
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$2,691.53
Median
$3,090.30
Typical High
$3,630.78
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$338.84
Median
$851.14
Typical High
$5,011.87
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
None
Typical Low
$1,905.46
Median
$2,630.27
Typical High
$5,495.41
11 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
$1,096.48
Median
$1,096.48
Typical High
$1,318.26
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
53 · Discontinued
Typical Low
$436.52
Median
$436.52
Typical High
$537.03
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
54 · Surgery only
Typical Low
$1,659.59
Median
$1,659.59
Typical High
$1,995.26
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
55 · Aftercare only
Typical Low
$331.13
Median
$331.13
Typical High
$398.11
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
56 · Pre-op care only
Typical Low
$218.78
Median
$218.78
Typical High
$269.15
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
78 · Unplanned return to OR
Typical Low
$1,548.82
Median
$1,548.82
Typical High
$1,862.09
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
51 · Multiple procedures
Typical Low
$1,380.38
Median
$1,819.70
Typical High
$2,691.53
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
80 · Assistant surgeon
Typical Low
$549.54
Median
$724.44
Typical High
$1,071.52
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
81 · Minimal assistant surgeon
Typical Low
$389.05
Median
$512.86
Typical High
$741.31
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
82 · Assistant surgeon, no resident
Typical Low
$389.05
Median
$512.86
Typical High
$741.31
Medcost
Setting
Professional
Modifier
AS · PA/NP assist
Typical Low
$389.05
Median
$512.86
Typical High
$741.31

Where North Carolina sits

The same service costs 13.8 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

North Carolina· 27th of 51

$5,097

$4,074 physician + $1,023 facility

ME $35,114TX $2,545

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.