Summary

5 facilities within 25 miles of Raleigh publish prices for Facet Joint Injection. Cash prices range from $716 to $1,042 — a 1.5x difference for an identical procedure. The North Carolina average is $1,509.

$716 lowest
$1,042 highest
Best Value

Duke University Hospital

Durham, VA · Duke Health · 20.8 mi

$716 Cash price
5/5 CMS rating
80.0% Patient satisfaction

Lowest price among hospitals rated 5 stars or above. Patient satisfaction: 80%. Cash price of $716 is below the statewide average of $1,509.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Duke University Hospital 5★ · 20.8 mi · For-profit
$716
2
Duke Regional Hospital 4★ · 20.8 mi · Local government
$716
3
Rex Hospital 5★ · 0.0 mi · State government
$950
4
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus 4★ · 0.0 mi · Nonprofit
$1,042
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Duke University Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 20.8 mi $716 $2,654 3.7x 5/5 80.0% For-profit
2 Duke Regional Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 20.8 mi $716 $2,654 3.7x 4/5 71.0% Local government
3 Rex Hospital UNC Health Raleigh, NC · 0.0 mi $950 $1,583 1.67x 5/5 80.0% State government
4 Wakemed, Raleigh Campus WakeMed Raleigh, NC · 0.0 mi $1,042 $2,743 2.63x 4/5 71.0% Nonprofit
5 Duke Health Raleigh Hospital Duke Health Raleigh, NC · 3.8 mi $1,537

Insurance negotiated rates by facility

The rates below are what each insurer has contractually agreed to pay this hospital for Facet Joint Injection. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your deductible status and copay structure.

Duke University Hospital

Cash: $716
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
Trillium Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $600 -$116
Partners Managed Medicaid $667 -$50
MedCost Ultra $754 +$37
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $827 +$111
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $857 +$140
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $857 +$140
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $859 +$143
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $867 +$151
VOANS Medicare Advantage $867 +$151
Humana Medicare Advantage $868 +$152

10 additional plans not shown.

Duke Regional Hospital

Cash: $716
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $427 -$290
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $427 -$290
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $427 -$290
Trillium Managed Medicaid $427 -$290
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $474 -$242
Partners Managed Medicaid $474 -$242
UnitedHealthcare Managed Medicaid $498 -$218
MedCost Ultra $770 +$53
Aetna Whole Health $816 +$99
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $838 +$121
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $867 +$151
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $867 +$151
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $867 +$151
VOANS Medicare Advantage $867 +$151
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $884 +$168

10 additional plans not shown.

Rex Hospital

Cash: $950
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
ALLIANCE MANAGED MEDICAID $352 -$598
CAROLINA COMPLETE HEALTH MANAGED MEDICAID $352 -$598
HEALTHY BLUE NORTH CAROLINA MANAGED MEDICAID $352 -$598
UnitedHealthcare MANAGED MEDICAID $352 -$598
WELLCARE MANAGED MEDICAID $352 -$598
TRILLIUM MANAGED MEDICAID $356 -$594
PARTNERS MANAGED MEDICAID $363 -$587
VAYA HEALTH MANAGED MEDICAID $363 -$587
Blue Cross Blue Shield BLUE HOME $443 -$507
MedCost ULTRA $807 -$142
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $861 -$89
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $861 -$89
ALIGNMENT SMART HMO $861 -$89
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $861 -$89

13 additional plans not shown.

Wakemed, Raleigh Campus

Cash: $1,042
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Ambetter Exchange $246 -$796
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $492 -$550
Carolina Complete Managed Medicaid $492 -$550
Wellcare Managed Medicaid $492 -$550
Cigna Exchange $806 -$236
Aetna Medicare Advantage $861 -$182
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $861 -$182
Wellcare Medicare Advantage $861 -$182
Liberty Medicare Advantage $878 -$164
Pruitt Medicare Advantage $878 -$164
Alignment Medicare Advantage $904 -$139
Aetna Narrow Network $1,234 +$192
First Health Coventry Carelink $1,262 +$219
Blue Cross Blue Shield Commercial $1,366 +$324
Aetna Preferred $1,372 +$329

6 additional plans not shown.

Before you call

The data in this report is from each hospital's publicly filed prices. Here's how to use it.

Confirm the price

Call the hospital's billing department and ask for a price estimate or Good Faith Estimate for Facet Joint Injection (CPT 64493). Under federal law, they must provide this. Compare it to the published price in this report.

Ask about cash pay

If you haven't met your deductible, ask for the cash/self-pay rate. At many hospitals, the cash price is lower than the insurance-negotiated rate. You can see this in the insurance table above — some negotiated rates exceed the cash price.

Compare before you schedule

You are not required to use the facility your doctor referred you to. You can request a referral to any in-network facility. The same procedure, same quality — sometimes at a fraction of the price.

Ask about financial help

Most nonprofit hospitals in Virginia offer financial assistance to patients based on household income. This is separate from insurance — even insured patients can qualify. Ask billing for their Financial Assistance Policy.

Financial assistance by facility

Nonprofit hospitals are legally required to have financial assistance programs. Below is what we know about each facility's charitable care.

Facility Status Charity Care Provided How to Apply
Duke University Hospital For-profit N/A (for-profit)
Duke Regional Hospital Local government N/A (for-profit)
Rex Hospital State government N/A (for-profit)
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus Nonprofit Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Duke Health Raleigh Hospital N/A (for-profit)

What to do next

  1. Identify your top 2-3 facilities based on price, quality rating, and distance. The data in this report shows that lower price does not mean lower quality — check the star ratings.
  2. Call billing before you schedule. Confirm the published price. Ask for a Good Faith Estimate. Ask whether there's a prompt-pay or cash-pay discount beyond the listed rate.
  3. Check your deductible status. If you haven't met your deductible, compare the cash rate to what you'd owe through insurance. In some cases, paying cash is cheaper than using your plan.
  4. Apply for financial assistance if your household income is under $60,000-$125,000 (thresholds vary). Most eligible patients never apply because they don't know the program exists.
  5. Get everything in writing. Before your procedure, get a written price estimate. After, review the bill line by line. Roughly 80% of hospital bills contain errors (Becker's Hospital Review).

Data sources

Hospital prices
Published machine-readable files, required under CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule (45 CFR Part 180)
Quality ratings
CMS Hospital Compare, updated quarterly
Patient satisfaction
HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems)
Financial data
CMS Cost Reports (charity care, revenue) and IRS 990 filings (officer compensation)

This report is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Every price shown is a price a hospital published — not an estimate. Actual out-of-pocket costs depend on your insurance plan, deductible status, and clinical circumstances. Consult your healthcare provider and insurer before making decisions.