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CostHelper > Health & Personal Care  > Medical Specialties & Departments > Colostomy

Colostomy Cost


How Much Does a Colostomy Cost?

 
average costWith Health Insurance: Copay + 10%-50% Coinsurancehigh costWithout Health Insurance: $20,000-$60,000

A colostomy is a surgical procedure that connects the colon to the abdominal wall so feces can collect in a bag outside the body. It typically is done due to cancer, infection or injury. It can be temporary or permanent.

Typical costs:

  • For patients covered by health insurance, out-of-pocket costs for a colostomy typically consist of doctor visit and prescription drug copays as well as coinsurance of 10%-50% for surgery. A colostomy typically is covered by health insurance.
  • For patients not covered by health insurance, a colostomy typically costs from less than $20,000 to more than $60,000, depending on the geographic location, the hospital and the individual case. According to Vimo, a health cost comparison shopping tool affiliated with WebMD, the national average list price for a colostomy is $29,200. Wright Medical Center[1] in Iowa charges almost $28,400 total, including a doctor fee of almost $3,700, for a partial colectomy -- removal of a diseased portion of colon in which the colon is either reconnected, or a colostomy is created. And, according to Vimo, the list price for colostomy creation at Christiana Care Health Service in Delaware is $17,700, while at Sumter Regional Hospital, in Georgia, it is $36,800. At the University of Kansas Hospital it is $43,800 and at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, it is $62,600, according to Vimo.
Related articles: Chemotherapy, Radiation Therapy, Health Insurance

What should be included:
  • For a colostomy[2] , the patient typically is placed under general anesthesia. The surgeon usually removes a diseased part of the colon, then cuts a hole in the abdomen, to which the end of the large intestine is sutured. This creates an opening, called a stoma, through which stool can exit into a bag. After the operation, a hospital stay of four to 10 days typically is required.
  • The National Institutes of Health offers an overview[3] of a colostomy. And the American Cancer Society has information on the types of colostomies[4] .
Additional costs:
  • Supplies such as colostomy bags, adhesive paste, skin barrier and odor control tablets are needed. This can cost about $100-$300 or more per month.
Discounts:
  • Many hospitals give discounts of up to 30% or more to uninsured/cash-paying patients. For example, Washington Hospital Healthcare System[5] in California offers a 35% discount.
  • OstoGroup.org provides free colostomy supplies[6] to uninsured patients, who pay only shipping.
Shopping for a colostomy:
  • The American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons has a surgeon locator[7] .
  • The Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society offers a locator[8] for ostomy nurses, who help the patient care for and manage the colostomy.
  • Companies such as Allegro Medical[9] and Edgepark Medical Supplies[10] offer colostomy products.
  • The American Cancer Society offers a guide[11] to a colostomy with information on choosing a pouching system to collect the waste and ordering supplies.
Material on this page is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice. Always consult your physician or pharmacist regarding medications or medical procedures.
 
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What People Are Paying - Recent Comments
---
Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance
Posted by: Ícaro in --, CA.Posted: March 27th, 2021 05:03AM
Type of Colostomy: Reversion
Hello, my name is Icaro and I live in Brasil. I would like to know how much colostomy reversal surgery costs on average in the United States. Thanks
Was this post helpful to you?   yes     no Report prohibited or spam
Colostomy surgery
Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance
Posted by: Jonathan Rush in Michigan city, IN.Posted: October 25th, 2020 02:10PM
Type of Colostomy: Lifetime
Does Medicaid cover getting a colostomy surgery. I am paralyzed from the chest down. I have tried for 5 years in nursing homes to get on a bowl program, but have severe leakage problems. I constantly keep have bowl like as if someone took a hand full of paint and smear it there every 3 hours and it never stops. I want to go home and be discharged from nursing home I’m only 34 years old. I can do everything in my own believe it or not. I can transfer get dressed take care of my urine, but what I can’t do is go home and have to wear briefs for the rest of my life that cost a lot when your using 6-7 a day and having to do it yourself because home health is not there 24/7 and it’s one of the major reason why I ended up back here it made me so depressed s I wouldn’t eat because I didn’t want to go. The. I didn’t want to be in a brief. I do t deserve to have to live this life in here. All I need is a colostomy surgery and I can go home and even the doctor here and all the nurses agree.
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Colostomy surgery
Amount: $4,000.00 not covered by insurance
Posted by: C. in Augusta, ME.Posted: August 6th, 2018 02:08PM
Type of Colostomy: Transverse and descending
Total w/ nursing care after hospital was $250,000. In
rural Maine, MediCare.
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San Francisco General
Amount: $143,000.00 not covered by insurance
Posted by: JPS in San Francisco, CA.Posted: July 25th, 2017 03:07PM
Type of Colostomy: Partial
This seems staggeringly high
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External Resources:
  1.  www.iowaspecialtyhospital.com/index.php?option=com_costestimator&Itemid=189
  2.  www.bcm.edu/surgery/
  3.  www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002942.htm
  4.  www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/physicalsideeffects/ostomies/col...
  5.  www.whhs.com/about/washington-hospital-discount-policy-for-uninsured/
  6.  /www.ostogroup.org/sitemenu
  7.  www.fascrs.org/patients/find_surgeon/
  8.  www.wocn.org/?page=Nurse_Referral
  9.  www.allegromedical.com/ostomy-supplies-c529.html
  10.  www.edgepark.com/shopcatalog/category/ostomy-pouches/
  11.  www.cancer.org/acs/groups/cid/documents/webcontent/002823-pdf.pdf
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