Ear tubes, local anesthesia cost in North Carolina
In North Carolina, 15 hospitals publish a cash price for ear tube placement (tympanostomy) with local anesthesia, one ear: from $124.88 to $1,506.00, with a median of $651.78. The lowest price is at ECU Health Bertie Hospital (Windsor). The highest price is 12.1× the lowest.
- The median here, $651.78, is 12% below the US median of $741.60.
- That is 1.2× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($551.01).
- North Carolina ranks 20th of 34 states by median, cheapest first.
- 1 of 15 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Outpatient cash prices, one line per hospital — its lowest listed price for code 69433. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Nov 7, 2026. See them on a map
Lowest$124.88ECU Health Bertie Hospital
Median$651.78half of hospitals charge less
Highest$1,506.00in North Carolina
Lowest saves$526.90vs the median
Hospitals in North Carolina, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | File date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ECU Health Bertie Hospital lowest Windsor · Windsor, NC Tympanostomy, Local, Uni | $124.88 | $223.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Sentara Albemarle Regional Medical Center Elizabeth City · Elizabeth City, NC 69433 Create Eardrum Opening | $618.50 | $1,237.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Betsy Johnson Hospital Dunn · Anderson Creek, NC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $650.40 | $1,084.00 | Apr 7, 2026 source file |
| Cape Fear Valley - Bladen County Hospital Elizabethtown · Elizabethtown, NC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $650.40 | $1,084.00 | Mar 21, 2026 source file |
| Cape Fear Valley - Hoke Hospital Raeford · Fayetteville, NC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $650.40 | $1,084.00 | Mar 30, 2026 source file |
| Cape Fear Valley Medical Center Fayetteville · Fayetteville, NC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $650.40 | $1,084.00 | Mar 21, 2026 source file |
| Highsmith-Rainey Specialty Hospital Fayetteville · Fayetteville, NC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING | $650.40 | $1,084.00 | Mar 22, 2026 source file |
| Duke University Hospital Durham · Durham, NC Tympanostomy Loc/Top Anes | $651.78 | $2,414.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Duke Health Raleigh Hospital Raleigh · Raleigh-Cary, NC Tympanostomy Loc/Top Anes | $651.78 | $2,414.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| ECU Health Beaufort Hospital Washington · Washington, NC Tympanostomy, Local, Uni | $718.15 | $1,355.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| ECU Health Medical Center Greenville · Greenville, NC Tympanostomy, Local, Uni | $718.15 | $1,355.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| North Carolina Baptist Hospital Winston Salem · Winston-Salem, NC HC TYMPANOSTOMY LOCAL/TOPICAL ANESTHESIA | $751.00 | $1,502.00 | Oct 8, 2025 source file |
| North Carolina Baptist Hospital Bermuda Run · Winston-Salem, NC HC TYMPANOSTOMY LOCAL/TOPICAL ANESTHESIA | $792.50 | $1,585.00 | Oct 30, 2026 source file |
| Lexington Medical Center Lexington · Winston-Salem, NC HC TYMPANOSTOMY LOCAL/TOPICAL ANESTHESIA | $822.00 | $1,644.00 | Oct 30, 2026 source file |
| AdventHealth Hendersonville Hendersonville · Asheville, NC HC CREATE EARDRUM OPENING,LOC/TOP ANESTH | $1,506.00 | $1,506.00 | Apr 1, 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.
At or below Medicare This cash price is at or below what Medicare pays a hospital for the same service, which is unusually low. It is what the hospital's file says; confirm it and what it includes before booking. More
No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More
By metro area
Each metro page compares every listing, including prices for both sides of the body.
| Metro area | Hospitals | Lowest | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fayetteville, NC | 3 | $650.40 | $650.40 |
| Winston-Salem, NC | 3 | $751.00 | $792.50 |
| Anderson Creek, NC | 1 | $650.40 | $650.40 |
| Asheville, NC | 1 | $1,506.00 | $1,506.00 |
| Durham, NC | 1 | $651.78 | $651.78 |
| Elizabethtown, NC | 1 | $650.40 | $650.40 |
| Elizabeth City, NC | 1 | $618.50 | $618.50 |
| Greenville, NC | 1 | $718.15 | $718.15 |
| Raleigh-Cary, NC | 1 | $651.78 | $651.78 |
| Windsor, NC | 1 | $124.88 | $124.88 |
| Washington, NC | 1 | $718.15 | $718.15 |
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 ear tubes, local anesthesia is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Ear tubes, local anesthesia explained.
Ear tube placement (tympanostomy) with local anesthesia, one ear in other states
- Alabama$279.75, 1 hospital
- Alaska$938.00, 3 hospitals
- Arizona$584.09, 2 hospitals
- Arkansas$468.00
- California$1,024.40
- Colorado$470.43, 3 hospitals
- Connecticut$738.24, 1 hospital
- Delaware$2,746.00, 1 hospital
- District of Columbia$1,678.43, 1 hospital
- Florida$1,072.00
- Georgia$911.43
- Hawaii$1,221.50, 3 hospitals
- Idaho$709.71
- Illinois$550.00
- Indiana$593.60, 3 hospitals
- Iowa$417.02
- Kansas$446.40
- Kentucky$323.80
- Louisiana$508.00
- Maine$344.25
- Massachusetts$1,424.50
- Michigan$326.23
- Minnesota$437.38
- Mississippi$370.80
- Missouri$541.70
- Montana$435.78
- Nebraska$455.17
- Nevada$807.20, 2 hospitals
- New Jersey$3,886.00
- New Mexico$389.92, 2 hospitals
- New York$1,089.00
- North Dakota$996.83
- Ohio$1,324.05
- Oklahoma$284.00
- Oregon$563.08
- Pennsylvania$1,096.60
- Rhode Island$2,938.32, 2 hospitals
- South Carolina$999.22
- South Dakota$741.60
- Tennessee$380.60
- Texas$811.68
- Utah$875.98, 1 hospital
- Vermont$352.40, 4 hospitals
- Virginia$818.00
- Washington$523.75
- West Virginia$620.00
- Wisconsin$522.60
- Wyoming$458.28, 2 hospitals
Median cash price across the state's hospitals.