# Spinal fusion, lower back (hospital stay): what Regence BlueCross BlueShield pays, by state

The whole hospital stay for a lower-back spinal fusion, without major complications.

- Insurer: Regence BlueCross BlueShield
- Billing code: 460 (Hospital stays (inpatient))
- Price shown: negotiated in-network price, hospital stay, facility fee
- Prices as of: 2026-10-01
- All of the insurer's plans pooled; the map also shows single networks

| State | Providers | Lowest | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | Highest | Medicare pays | Median vs Medicare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Idaho | 30 | $25,458.98 | $44,004.19 | $44,004.19 | $62,886.18 | $79,102.09 | $31,029.73 | 1.4x Medicare |
| Oregon | 47 | $48,159.30 | $48,159.30 | $61,106.38 | $97,373.30 | $120,107.15 | $37,944.17 | 1.6x Medicare |
| Utah | 9 | $46,004.91 | $46,004.91 | $46,004.91 | $46,004.91 | $63,777.21 | $32,403.27 | 1.4x Medicare |
| Washington | 28 | $28,664.52 | $55,874.42 | $73,889.58 | $97,453.77 | $120,871.65 | $40,125.71 | 1.8x Medicare |

**“x Medicare”** compares each price with what original Medicare actually paid hospitals in the same state for the same kind of stay in 2024, the newest year it has published: the average per stay, the patient’s share included, at hospitals with more than ten such stays. Medicare’s payment varies by hospital (wages, teaching, low-income patients), so this is a state average, not any one hospital’s rate. Insurers write their contracts as a share of Medicare, so 1.3x means the insurer pays 30% more than Medicare would; Medicare Advantage plans generally pay close to 1.0x.

Prices are what the insurer has agreed to pay, not what you will be billed. This is a statewide summary: prices vary far more between towns and between practices than these medians suggest, and "providers" counts everyone with a contracted price, not only those who perform the procedure.

Map: https://medicalpricetransparency.netlify.app/insurers/regence/statemap_460_US.html  
About this insurer's data, and its other procedures: [index.md](index.md)