Ear tubes, local anesthesia cost in Chicago, IL
In Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 15 hospitals list a cash price for ear tube placement (tympanostomy) with local anesthesia, one ear: from $204.33 to $2,417.00, with a median of $530.00. The lowest listed price is at Humboldt Park Health — $325.67 less than the median here. Across Illinois, the median is $349.60 at 19 hospitals.
Cash prices at 15 facilities across 10 cities for code 69433, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Nov 4, 2025 and Aug 24, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Humboldt Park Health lowest Chicago, IL · (773) 292-8200 Incision of eardrum with insertion of eardrum tube under local or topical anesthesia | $204.33 | $729.75 | $729.75 | 72% | Aug 24, 2026 source file |
| Gottlieb Memorial Hospital Melrose Park, IL · (708) 681-3200 Tympanostomy W/Tube | $288.80 | $1,520.00 | $182.30–$4,278.00 | 81% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| NorthShore University HealthSystems Glenbrook Hospital Glenview, IL Create Eardrum Opening Local Anesth | $309.40 | $476.00 | $64.26–$259.90 | 35% | — source file |
| NorthShore University HealthSystems Evanston Hospital Evanson, IL · (847) 570-2000 Create Eardrum Opening Local Anesth | $309.40 | $476.00 | $64.26–$259.90 | 35% | — source file |
| NorthShore University HealthSystems Highland Park Hospital Highland Park, IL Create Eardrum Opening Local Anesth | $309.40 | $476.00 | $64.26–$259.90 | 35% | — source file |
| NorthShore University HealthSystems Skokie Hospital Skokie, IL Create Eardrum Opening Local Anesth | $309.40 | $476.00 | $64.26–$259.90 | 35% | — source file |
| Loyola University Medical Center Maywood, IL · (708) 216-9000 Tympanostomy W/Tube | $349.60 | $1,520.00 | $263.99–$780.35 | 77% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Advocate Childrens Hospital Oak Lawn Oak Lawn, IL TYMPANOSTOMY & TUBE INSERT | $530.00 | $1,060.00 | $417.64–$6,291.00 | 50% | Nov 4, 2025 source file |
| Advocate Christ Medical Center Oak Lawn, IL · (708) 684-8000 TYMPANOSTOMY & TUBE INSERT | $530.00 | $1,060.00 | $417.64–$6,291.00 | 50% | Nov 4, 2025 source file |
| Northshore University Healthsystem - Evanston Hospital Evanston, IL · (847) 570-2000 CREATE EARDRUM OPENING,LOCAL ANESTH | $550.00 | $550.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Swedish Covenant Health Chicago, IL · (773) 878-8200 CREATE EARDRUM OPENING,LOCAL ANESTH | $550.00 | $550.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Endeavor Health Clinical Operations Highland Park, IL CREATE EARDRUM OPENING,LOCAL ANESTH | $550.00 | $550.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Northwest Community Hospital Arlington Heights, IL · (847) 618-1000 Hb Create Eardrum Opening | $597.00 | $597.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago Chicago, IL · (312) 227-4000 H CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $621.60 | $888.00 | $150.96–$14,756.00 | 30% | — source file |
| The University of Chicago Medical Center Chicago, IL · (773) 702-9785 Pr Tympanostomy Local/Topical Anesthesia-Pbb | $2,417.00 | $2,417.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The University of Chicago Medical Center Chicago, IL · (773) 702-9785 Hc Tympanostomy, Local Or Topical Anesthesia-Pbb | $5,762.00 | $5,762.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The University of Chicago Medical Center Chicago, IL · (773) 702-9785 Hc Tympanostomy, Local Or Topical Anesthesia | $7,942.00 | $7,942.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $204.33, median $530.00, highest $2,417.00 — a 11.8× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 12 facilities here, median $540.00. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 6 of 10 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is 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 placing a small tube in the eardrum while awake, with numbing medicine, usually in older children or adults.
What the price covers
The price covers the procedure and the tube. The office visit may be billed separately.