Florida Joint Replacement Cost Disparities

The recent research conducted by Blue Cross Blue Shield into variations in the cost of hip and knee joint replacement surgery, two of the fastest-growing medical procedures in the United States, continues to reverberate. The study is titled, “A Study of Cost Variations for Knee and Hip Replacement Surgeries in the U.S.”

Researchers looked at claims for more than 53, 000 procedures in 64 healthcare markets from 2010 to 2013 and found that typical joint replacements cost an average of a little over $30, 000. But there were price swings of as much as 313% depending on where patients had their surgeries performed.

In Florida the study reviewed medical markets in Orlando, Jacksonville, Fort Myers-Cape Coral/Punta Gorda, and Tallahassee. According to the report, the medical facilities in the city of Orlando showed the greatest price disparities. It was 88% for knee and 89% for hip replacement surgeries, while the price differentials amounted to only 6% for knee and 2% for hip replacement in Tallahassee.

When comparing Florida markets, researchers found that average costs for knee replacements ranged from a high of $32, 600 in Tallahassee to a low of $28, 100 in Fort Myers. A hip replacement cost from a high of $30, 222 in Jacksonville to a low of $27, 500 in Orlando.

“Extreme price variation in healthcare can have obvious financial consequences for individuals and employers, ” the study’s authors wrote. “And from a macroeconomic perspective, it can have serious implications for the sustainability of (the) U.S. healthcare system.”