SelfPayRates
Surgery and procedures CPT 29877 Minnesota Outpatient

Knee arthroscopy, cartilage smoothing cost in Minnesota

In Minnesota, 11 hospitals publish a cash price for knee arthroscopy with smoothing of damaged cartilage (chondroplasty): from $956.04 to $11,436.34, with a median of $2,437.50. The lowest price is at Lakewood Health System (Staples). The highest price is 12.0× the lowest.

  • The median here, $2,437.50, is 50% below the US median of $4,899.91.
  • Minnesota ranks 2nd of 33 states by median, cheapest first.
  • Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.

Minnesota law (Minn. Stat. §144.589): a hospital may not charge an uninsured patient whose household income is under $125,000 more than the lowest amount it would be paid for the same service by a private insurer, counting the insured patient's share. If the cash price below is higher, ask the billing office to apply this limit. Each hospital's page here shows the range of insurer rates in its own file (the "Insurers pay" column), a starting point when you ask. Other states' laws.

Outpatient cash prices, one line per hospital — its lowest listed price for code 29877. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Oct 25, 2026. See them on a map

Lowest$956.04Lakewood Health System
Median$2,437.50half of hospitals charge less
Highest$11,436.34in Minnesota
Lowest saves$1,481.46vs the median

Hospitals in Minnesota, cheapest first

HospitalCash priceList priceFile date
Lakewood Health System lowest Staples · Staples, MN Removal or shaving of knee joint cartilage using an endoscope $956.04 $1,542.00 Sep 11, 2026
source file
Stevens Community Medical Center Morris · Morris, MN Removal or shaving of knee joint cartilage using an endoscope $1,062.75 $1,417.00 Jun 26, 2026
source file
Community Memorial Hospital Cloquet · Duluth, MN-WI ORTHO ARTHRO KNEE DEBR CARTIL $1,247.68 $1,949.50 Apr 1, 2026
source file
Meeker County Memorial Hospital Litchfield · Litchfield, MN ARTHROSCOPY, KNEE, SURGICAL; DEBRIDEMENT/SHAVING OF ARTICULAR CA $1,322.88 $2,067.00 Dec 28, 2025
source file
Fairview Maple Grove Surgery Center Maple Grove · Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI HC KNEE ARTHROSCOPY, SHAVE ARTICULAR CARTILAGE $1,739.14 $4,337.00 May 18, 2026
source file
Methodist Hospital St. Louis Park · Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Knee Arthroscopy/Surgery $2,437.50 $9,375.00 Mar 31, 2026
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Glacial Ridge Hospital Glenwood · Glenwood, MN Removal or shaving of knee joint cartilage using an endoscope $3,011.83 $3,585.51 Oct 21, 2026
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Bigfork Valley Hospital Bigfork · Grand Rapids, MN KNEE ARTHROSCOPY DEBRIDEMENT $3,379.81 $4,760.30 Sep 15, 2026
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Rainy Lake Medical Center International Falls · International Falls, MN ARTHROSCPY KNEE SURGICAL DEBRIDEMENT SHAVING ARTICULAR CARTILAGE(CHOND $3,635.90 $4,721.94 May 6, 2026
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M Health Fairview University of Mn Medical Center Minneapolis · Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI HC KNEE ARTHROSCOPY, SHAVE ARTICULAR CARTILAGE $3,696.42 $9,218.00 Feb 6, 2026
source file
Astera Health Wadena · Wadena, MN Arthroscopy, knee, surgical; debrid $11,436.34 $15,839.81 Feb 20, 2026
source file
Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.
Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More
List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More
File date When the hospital last updated its price file, as the file says itself. A dash means the file gives no date.

By metro area

Each metro page compares every listing, including prices for both sides of the body.

Metro areaHospitalsLowestMedian
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 3 $1,739.14 $2,437.50
Duluth, MN-WI 1 $1,247.68 $1,247.68
Glenwood, MN 1 $3,011.83 $3,011.83
Grand Rapids, MN 1 $3,379.81 $3,379.81
International Falls, MN 1 $3,635.90 $3,635.90
Litchfield, MN 1 $1,322.88 $1,322.88
Morris, MN 1 $1,062.75 $1,062.75
Staples, MN 1 $956.04 $956.04
Wadena, MN 1 $11,436.34 $11,436.34
Market A metro area (as the Census Bureau defines it) or, outside metro areas, a town. Each links to every hospital price there.
Hospitals How many hospitals publish a cash price for this code here. Each hospital counts once, at its lowest outpatient cash price.
Lowest The lowest cash price among those hospitals.
Median The middle cash price: half of the hospitals charge less, half charge more. One price per hospital. More

What knee arthroscopy, cartilage smoothing is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Knee arthroscopy, cartilage smoothing explained.

Knee arthroscopy with smoothing of damaged cartilage (chondroplasty) in other states

Median cash price across the state's hospitals.