Surgery and procedures CPT 20605 Inpatient — admitted to hospital

Joint injection (medium joint) cost in Columbus, NE — inpatient

In Columbus, NE, 1 hospital lists a cash price for joint injection or drainage, medium joint (wrist, elbow, ankle) as an inpatient: from $130.05 to $130.05, with a median of $130.05. Across Nebraska, the median is $228.75 at 16 hospitals.

Cash prices at 1 facility for code 20605, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Feb 28, 2026.

Lowest$130.05Alegent Health Memorial Hospital, Schuyler
Median$130.05half pay less
Highest$130.05in this market
Difference1.0×highest vs lowest

Where each hospital's price falls

Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Columbus, NE.

median
Lowest $130.05Highest $656.20
one sideboth sides

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceInsurers payOff listFile date
Alegent Health Memorial Hospital, Schuyler lowest Schuyler, NE · (402) 352-2441 PC INJECT ASPIRATE MD JOINT $130.05 $153.00 $138.09–$149.94 15% Feb 28, 2026
source file
Alegent Health Memorial Hospital, Schuyler Schuyler, NE · (402) 352-2441 HC ASPIRATE INJ INTERMED JOINT $413.10 $486.00 $438.62–$476.28 15% Feb 28, 2026
source file
Alegent Health Memorial Hospital, Schuyler both sides Schuyler, NE · (402) 352-2441 HC ASPIRATE INJ INTERMED JOINT- BILATERAL $656.20 $772.00 $696.73–$756.56 15% Feb 28, 2026
source file

Inpatient: lowest $130.05, median $130.05, highest $130.05.

Both sides : lowest $656.20, median $656.20, highest $656.20.

The two groups are not comparable and are not averaged together: a price for both sides of the body covers twice the work. Merging them is how a single published "median" ends up far above what one side actually costs.

As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 1 facility here, median $130.05 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.

Cash or insurance?

At the one hospital here that publishes insurer rates for this code, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated and below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.

What it is

This code covers injecting or draining a medium-sized joint such as the wrist, elbow or ankle.

What the price covers

The price usually covers the procedure. The medicine and imaging guidance are billed separately.