Surgery and procedures CPT 29881 Outpatient

Knee arthroscopy with meniscus trim in Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA

In Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, 3 hospitals list a cash price for Knee arthroscopy with meniscus trim: from $1,220.00 to $1,329.60, with a median of $1,220.00. The lowest listed price is at Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc.

Cash prices at 3 facilities across 2 cities for code 29881, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 28, 2026 and Mar 31, 2026.

Lowest$1,220.00Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc
Median$1,220.00half pay less
Highest$1,329.60in this market
Difference1.1×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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA.

median
Lowest $1,220.00Highest $31,778.88
one sideboth sides

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceOff listFile date
Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc lowest Cedar Falls, IA PR Arthroscopy Knee Surg W/ Meniscectomy Incl Debr/Shvi Artc Cartilage $1,220.00 $1,220.00 Mar 31, 2026
source file
Covenant Medical Center Inc Waterloo, IA PR Arthroscopy Knee Surg W/ Meniscectomy Incl Debr/Shvi Artc Cartilage $1,220.00 $1,220.00 Mar 31, 2026
source file
Allen Memorial Hospital Corporation Waterloo, IA PR ARTHRS KNE SURG W/MENISCECTOMY MED/LAT W/SHVG $1,329.60 $1,662.00 20% Jan 28, 2026
source file
Sartori Memorial Hospital Inc one side Cedar Falls, IA HC Arthro Knee W/Mnsc Med or Lat Incl/Chndrplsty Same/Sep Compart Lt (Rest Method II CAH) $28,365.57 Mar 31, 2026
source file
Covenant Medical Center Inc one side Waterloo, IA HC Arthro Knee W/Mnsc Med or Lat Incl/Chndrplsty Same/Sep Compart Lt (Rest Method II CAH) $31,778.88 Mar 31, 2026
source file

Outpatient: lowest $1,220.00, median $1,220.00, highest $1,329.60 — a 1.1× difference within the same market.

One side of the body : lowest $28,365.57, median $30,072.23, highest $31,778.88 — a 1.1× difference within the same market.

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 inpatient, the same code is billed by 3 facilities here, median $1,870.00. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.

What it is

Knee arthroscopy with meniscectomy uses a small camera and instruments through tiny cuts to trim or remove a torn part of the meniscus, the cartilage cushion in the knee. The code also covers smoothing damaged cartilage in the knee when done.

What the price covers

The facility price covers the operating room and recovery. The surgeon's fee and anesthesia are usually billed separately.