CMS Price Transparency Data

Knee arthroscopy with meniscus repair

Facility: Boulder Community Health

Billing Code: 29881 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price low confidence

A fair price for this

$1,839

about 0.6× the $3,343 Medicare rate · typically $698–$6,176

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$1,060

Below the fair price — a good deal

about $779 under the fair price · 0.3× Medicare

Medicare pays $3,343 Fair price $1,839 This hospital $1,060

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other CO hospitals

Highest price of the 9 CO hospitals we have prices for — worth calling around.

Cheapest $535 Priciest $1,060

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 CO hospitals with a price for this procedure. Full list below.

A fair price for a Knee arthroscopy with meniscus repair is about $1,839 (about 0.6× the $3,343 Medicare rate). Boulder Community Health charges insurers about $1,060 — below the fair price — a good deal. Located in Boulder, CO.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

6 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna✓ Humana✓ Kaiser Permanente

Crossed out = this hospital hasn’t published a negotiated price for that insurer for this procedure. It doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t accepted — ask your insurer.

Insurance company	Price range	vs. Medicare
UnitedHealthcaremajor	$546 - $3,350	16%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$546 - $12,321	16%
Aetnamajor	$546 - $3,261	16%
Cignamajor	$892 - $7,204	27%
Humanamajor	$546 - $3,261	16%
Kaiser Permanentemajor	$841 - $7,640	25%
Devoted Health	$546 - $3,261	16%
SelectHealth	$765 - $7,598	23%
+ 4 smaller / regional plans	$454 - $3,359

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Medicaid.

Excludes 4 rental-network / third-party entries (e.g. Multiplan, PHCS) — these are pricing networks, not insurers.

Self-Pay How to get the cash price

Tell the billing desk you want to be billed as self-pay — not through insurance — before your visit.
Ask for the cash / prompt-pay discount in writing, with the exact price, before you agree to anything.
Get it in writing that they won’t also bill your insurance, so the cash price is what you owe.
Check the CPT code on your bill matches exactly: 29881.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Boulder Community Health is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 29881.
Confirm the doctor or provider is in-network too — not just the hospital building.
Check your Explanation of Benefits against the hospital’s final itemized bill.

Estimate your out-of-pocket cost

A rough estimate of what you’d pay with insurance (deductible + coinsurance) versus paying the cash price yourself.

How you’d pay

Deductible left to meet ($)

Your coinsurance (%)

Enter your details and press estimate to compare.

Other Procedures at Boulder Community Health

Compare: Knee arthroscopy with meniscus repair at other CO hospitals

Insurance negotiated median for the same procedure, sorted lowest first.