Anesthesia Cost

• Anesthesia typically is covered by health insurance for medically necessary procedures. For patients covered by health insurance, out-of-pocket costs for anesthesia can consist of coinsurance of about 10% to 50%.
• For patients without health insurance, the cost of anesthesia can range from less than $500 for a local anesthetic administered in an office setting to $500 -$3,500 or more for regional anesthesia and/or general anesthesia administered by an anesthesiologist and/or certified registered nurse anesthetist in a hospital operating room.
• Total anesthesia costs typically include: the anesthesia provider fee and the hospital anesthesia fee, which covers the cost of supplies, equipment, medications and hospital staff used for anesthesia. General anesthesia costs typically are calculated based on a base unit value assigned to the procedure based on its complexity (for example, an appendectomy is six base units and coronary bypass surgery is 20) added to the number of 15-minute time units the provider spends and multiplied by the provider's charge per unit. A 2010 survey by the American Society of Anesthesiologists showed a median of about $60 to $64 per unit. So, an anesthesiologist might bill $600 for an appendectomy that takes an hour, or bill $2,500 or more for heart surgery that takes six hours.
• Hospital anesthesia charges typically depend on the complexity of the procedure. For example, at Akron General in Ohio, the typical hospital anesthesia charge is about $200 -$1,050, depending on the surgery. HealthcareBlueBook.com lists approximate anesthesia costs for a variety of procedures: $469 for a leg fracture surgery, $582 for hernia repair, $619 for a tonsillectomy, $1,243 for a total hysterectomy without cancer, $1,159 for spinal fusion surgery and $2,495 for coronary bypass grafting.

• For local anesthesia, the provider will inject a local anesthetic into a specific area of the body to numb that area by preventing the nerves form sending pain signals. Lidocaine is an example of a commonly used local anesthetic.
• For regional anesthesia, the provider will inject the anesthetic near a cluster of nerves. Typically, the patient can either remain fully aware or be given a sedative. Spinal blocks, epidural blocks and peripheral nerve blocks -- which can numb a leg, arm or the head -- are all types of regional anesthesia. Regional anesthesia can be used alone during surgery, in combination with general anesthesia during surgery or after surgery for pain control. The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine has information on regional anesthesia.
• For general anesthesia, the provider typically will administer the anesthetic as a gas through a mask and/or intravenously. The anesthetic makes the patient unconscious and unable to feel pain. An anesthesia care provider will monitor the patient's heart, lung and kidney function and temperature and will adjust medications if needed. A reversal agent may be administered after surgery to help the patient wake up. WebMD offers an overview of what happens before, during and after anesthesia.

• Many doctors and hospitals give discounts of up to 30% or more to uninsured or cash-paying patients. For example, Washington Hospital Healthcare System in California offers a 35% discount.
• A 2010 study by The Lewin group, a healthcare consulting firm, showed that the total anesthesia cost is about 25% less if a certified registered nurse anesthetist, rather than an anesthesiologist, is the sole anesthesia provider. The American Society of Anesthesiologists offers information about anesthesiologists, and the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists offers information about nurse anesthetists. Certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) can perform all types of anesthesia, and 16 states have chosen to opt out of a federal law that requires physician supervision of a nurse anesthetist; in other states, the surgeon sometimes acts as the supervising physician.

• The surgeon typically will choose an anesthesiologist for the surgery, but the patient can discuss the choice of anesthesiologist with the surgeon ahead of time. The anesthesiologist should be certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology. In some cases, a registered nurse anesthetist will provide or help with anesthesia care.
• The American Society of Anesthesiologists recommends that patients ask their anesthesiologist: what qualifications he or she has, how many similar procedures he or she has done; who else might be involved in the patient's anesthesia care; if the anesthesiologist will monitor heart, breathing or anything else; where recovery will take place; whether there will be an anesthesiologist on duty in the recovery room; and who will manage pain control after surgery.
• The American Society of Anesthesiologists offers an FAQ about anesthesia.
• The National Institutes of Health offers a tutorial on how to minimize the risks of anesthesia.

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