The average cost to undergo a colonoscopy in the U.S. in 2024 is $1,608, according to data from Sidecar Health — but how does that change depending on where the procedure is done?
A JAMA Health Forum study, published Dec. 15, found that U.S. hospitals' facility fees for colonoscopy procedures covered by private health insurance are an average of 55% higher than facility fees billed by ASCs.
In 2017, patients paid $943 to get a diagnostic colonoscopy in an ASC — defined as a procedure when providers perform a colonoscopy along with a biopsy or other procedure — compared to $1,402 in hospital outpatient departments, according to data from Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliate Blue Health Intelligence's "Rising Prices for Hospital Outpatient Care" brief, published last year. In 2022, the most recent data collected, those figures increased to $1,040 for ASC procedures and $1,646 for HOPDs.
In that six-year span, the cost of a diagnostic colonoscopy at HOPDs increased by 17%, compared to 10% at ASCs.
Here is a look at how the cost of a diagnostic colonoscopy changed each year at ASCs compared to HOPDs from 2018 to 2022:
2018
ASCs: $980 (+3.9%)
HOPDs: $1,472 (+5%)
2019
ASCs: $1,010 (+3.1%)
HOPDs: $1,520 (+3.3%)
2020
ASCs: $1,011 (+0.1%)
HOPDs: $1,557 (+2.4%)
2021
ASCs: $1,022 (+1.1%)
HOPDs: $1,601 (+2.8%)
2022
ASCs: $1,040 (+1.8%)
HOPDs: $1,646 (+2.8%)
Overall, from 2018 to 2022, the cost of a diagnostic colonoscopy increased 6.1% at ASCs from 2018 to 2022, compared to 11.8% at HOPDs.