Updated April 2026

Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours in California

209 California hospitals report Medicare totals for this DRG, averaging $72,556 (well above the $53,417 national mean), with a 3× spread from $37,445 to $118,257. 1 carry an A grade, 15 carry an F.

The Respiratory procedure Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours carries DRG code 208 in the CMS classification system. 2,717 hospitals in California report payment data, averaging $53,417 per procedure — median $51,850, ranging from $15,600 to $118,257. The $15,600-to-$118,257 payment range is wide: the same DRG code can attract very different reimbursements across hospitals, reflecting differences in cost structure, patient complexity within the DRG, and regional pricing dynamics. The Medicare DRG system bundles cases by diagnosis-and-procedure groupings, so payment differences within a single DRG mostly track hospital-specific factors rather than case-mix.

Within California, the 2,717 hospitals reporting this procedure span the full range of ownership types and hospital sizes. The state-specific average ($53,417) is shaped by which hospitals in the state see enough volume to report the DRG code at all. For patients with elective scheduling on Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours, the cost-comparison logic is straightforward: the per-procedure payment range is meaningfully wide, so the hospital chosen affects total cost. For patients in an emergency, the choice is functionally fixed — but the listed prices still matter for insurance-coverage and out-of-pocket planning.

About This Procedure

Respiratory DRGs include pneumonia, COPD, ventilator-supported respiratory failure, and chronic lung disease. Length of stay drives most of the cost spread, especially for ventilator cases that cross the 96-hour threshold.

Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours is Medicare DRG 208 in the Respiratory category. National Medicare average for this DRG is $53,417 across 2,717 reporting hospitals. The state-level view here filters that universe down to California only.

Cost Picture in California

California's average for this DRG sits well above the national Medicare mean. State-level differences are explained primarily by the regional Medicare wage index — the multiplier CMS applies to standardize DRG payments to local labor costs — alongside hospital case mix and the concentration of academic referral centers in the state's larger metros.

Within the state, the 3× spread between the lowest- and highest-reporting facility usually reflects length-of-stay differences, complication adjustments for sicker patients, teaching-status add-ons, and outlier payments for unusually long stays. Two hospitals reporting the same DRG can post meaningfully different totals without anything “wrong” happening at either site. For non-Medicare patients, the more relevant figure is the negotiated commercial rate published in each hospital's machine-readable file under the CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule.

Quality Alongside Price

For a planned admission, the most useful complement to the cost view is the hospital-specific quality data on CMS Care Compare. The site publishes risk-adjusted measures of mortality, readmission, complication, infection, and patient experience for every Medicare-participating hospital. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Patient Safety Indicators feed many of these CMS measures.

For complex procedures, hospital-level case volume correlates with outcomes in published research, even after risk adjustment. CMS publishes case counts on Care Compare alongside outcome measures.

Hospitals in California Reporting Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours

Sorted lowest to highest Medicare total payment. Pricing is informational and should be considered alongside CMS quality measures.

#	Hospital	City	Payment	Quality	Grade
1	Clovis Community Medical Center Clovis	Clovis	$37,445	★★☆☆☆	D
2	Fresno Va Medical Center (va Central California Healthcare System) Fresno	Fresno	$42,233	★★★★☆	C
3	St Mary Medical Center Long Beach	Long Beach	$44,281	★★★★☆	C
4	Keck Hospital Of Usc Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$45,338	★★★★☆	C
5	Sutter Lakeside Hospital Lakeport	Lakeport	$46,185	★★★★★	B
6	Glendora Hospital Glendora	Glendora	$46,713	Not Rated	C
7	Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital At Ucla Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$46,976	Not Rated	C
8	Sutter Amador Hospital Jackson	Jackson	$47,335	★★★★☆	C
9	Regional Medical Center Of San Jose San Jose	San Jose	$48,278	★★★☆☆	C
10	Contra Costa Regional Medical Center Martinez	Martinez	$49,351	★★★☆☆	C
11	Hi-Desert Medical Center Joshua Tree	Joshua Tree	$49,678	Not Rated	C
12	Va N California Healthcare System Mather	Mather	$50,106	★★★★☆	C
13	Loma Linda University Children's Hospital Loma Linda	Loma Linda	$50,213	★★★☆☆	C
14	Antelope Valley Hospital Lancaster	Lancaster	$50,803	★☆☆☆☆	D
15	Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Ridgecrest	Ridgecrest	$50,879	Not Rated	C
16	Dameron Hospital Stockton	Stockton	$51,268	★★★☆☆	C
17	Providence Little Company Of Mary Med Ctr Torrance Torrance	Torrance	$52,022	★★★★☆	C
18	Pioneers Memorial Healthcare District Brawley	Brawley	$52,337	★★☆☆☆	C
19	Ucsf Medical Center San Francisco	San Francisco	$53,420	★★★★★	A
20	St Bernardine Medical Center San Bernardino	San Bernardino	$53,534	★★★☆☆	C
21	Oak Valley Hospital District Oakdale	Oakdale	$53,629	Not Rated	D
22	John Muir Behavioral Health Center Concord	Concord	$53,633	Not Rated	D
23	El Camino Health Mountain View	Mountain View	$54,355	★★★★☆	B
24	Marian Regional Medical Center Santa Maria	Santa Maria	$54,748	★★☆☆☆	D
25	Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla La Jolla	La Jolla	$55,600	★★★★★	B
26	St Joseph's Behavioral Health Center Stockton	Stockton	$56,127	Not Rated	C
27	Sutter Roseville Medical Center Roseville	Roseville	$56,280	★★★☆☆	C
28	Lac/Olive View-Ucla Medical Center Sylmar	Sylmar	$56,402	★★☆☆☆	D
29	Joyce Eisenberg Keefer Medical Center Reseda	Reseda	$56,490	Not Rated	C
30	Plumas District Hospital Quincy	Quincy	$56,762	Not Rated	C
31	Shriners Hospitals For Children Northern Calif Sacramento	Sacramento	$57,015	Not Rated	C
32	Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital Auburn	Auburn	$57,316	★★★★☆	C
33	Kern Medical Center Bakersfield	Bakersfield	$57,692	★★☆☆☆	D
34	Barton Memorial Hospital South Lake Tahoe	South Lake Tahoe	$57,947	★★★★☆	C
35	Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Riverside Riverside	Riverside	$58,060	★★★★★	B
36	Mercy Medical Center Merced	Merced	$58,159	★★☆☆☆	D
37	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Los Angeles Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$58,361	★★★★☆	C
38	Bakersfield Behavioral Healthcare Hospital, Llc Bakersfield	Bakersfield	$58,376	Not Rated	D
39	Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center Of Santa Cruz Santa Cruz	Santa Cruz	$58,453	Not Rated	D
40	Kaiser Foundation Hospital Fontana/Ontario Fontana	Fontana	$59,127	★★★☆☆	C
41	Ucsf Health Saint Francis Hospital San Francisco	San Francisco	$59,189	★★☆☆☆	D
42	Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital Santa Rosa	Santa Rosa	$59,539	★★★★☆	C
43	Cedar-Sinai Marina Del Rey Hospital Marina Del Rey	Marina Del Rey	$59,550	★★★★☆	C
44	Del Amo Hospital Torrance	Torrance	$59,658	Not Rated	D
45	Providence St. Joseph Hospital Orange	Orange	$59,732	★★★★☆	B
46	Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville	Susanville	$59,848	★★★☆☆	C
47	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - South San Francisco South San Francisco	South San Francisco	$59,933	★★★★★	B
48	Adventist Health Tulare Tulare	Tulare	$60,338	Not Rated	C
49	Pih Health Hospital-Whittier Whittier	Whittier	$60,386	★★★☆☆	C
50	Adventist Health Simi Valley Simi Valley	Simi Valley	$60,476	★★☆☆☆	D
51	El Centro Regional Medical Center El Centro	El Centro	$60,882	★☆☆☆☆	D
52	Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Santa Rosa	Santa Rosa	$61,120	★★☆☆☆	D
53	Parkview Community Hospital Medical Center Riverside	Riverside	$61,626	★★☆☆☆	D
54	Memorialcare Long Beach Medical Center Long Beach	Long Beach	$62,008	★★☆☆☆	D
55	College Hospital Cerritos	Cerritos	$62,066	Not Rated	D
56	Southern Inyo Hospital Lone Pine	Lone Pine	$62,143	Not Rated	C
57	Community Hospital Of Huntington Park Huntington Park	Huntington Park	$63,338	Not Rated	D
58	Orchard Hospital Gridley	Gridley	$63,365	Not Rated	C
59	Ucsf Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital And Clinics San Francisco	San Francisco	$63,469	Not Rated	C
60	Tarzana Treatment Center Tarzana	Tarzana	$63,494	Not Rated	D
61	San Mateo Medical Center San Mateo	San Mateo	$64,066	Not Rated	D
62	Santa Monica - Ucla Med Ctr & Orthopaedic Hospital Santa Monica	Santa Monica	$64,119	★★★★☆	C
63	Stanford Health Care Stanford	Stanford	$64,254	★★★★★	B
64	Laguna Honda Hospital & Rehabilitation Center San Francisco	San Francisco	$64,435	Not Rated	C
65	Chinese Hospital San Francisco	San Francisco	$64,454	★★★☆☆	C
66	Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento Sacramento	Sacramento	$64,505	★★★★☆	C
67	Saint Agnes Medical Center Fresno	Fresno	$64,852	★★☆☆☆	D
68	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Redwood City Redwood City	Redwood City	$64,950	★★★★☆	C
69	Mercy General Hospital Sacramento	Sacramento	$65,121	★★★★☆	C
70	Bear Valley Community Hospital Big Bear Lake	Big Bear Lake	$65,122	Not Rated	D
71	Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego	San Diego	$65,479	Not Rated	D
72	La Palma Intercommunity Hospital La Palma	La Palma	$65,867	★★★☆☆	C
73	Coalinga Regional Medical Center Coalinga	Coalinga	$65,916	Not Rated	D
74	Jerold Phelps Community Hospital Garberville	Garberville	$65,950	Not Rated	C
75	Sharp Memorial Hospital San Diego	San Diego	$66,024	★★★★☆	C
76	Dept Of State Hospitals - Metropolitan - Psy Norwalk	Norwalk	$66,104	Not Rated	D
77	Redlands Community Hospital Redlands	Redlands	$66,122	★★★☆☆	C
78	Novato Community Hospital Novato	Novato	$66,165	★★★★★	C
79	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Walnut Creek Walnut Creek	Walnut Creek	$66,166	★★★☆☆	C
80	Woodland Memorial Hospital Woodland	Woodland	$66,538	★★★★★	C
81	Community Hospital Of The Monterey Peninsula Monterey	Monterey	$66,767	★★★☆☆	C
82	Mammoth Hospital Mammoth Lakes	Mammoth Lakes	$66,904	Not Rated	D
83	Weed Ach (ft Irwin) Fort Irwin	Fort Irwin	$67,107	Not Rated	D
84	Alvarado Parkway Institute Behavioral Health Syste La Mesa	La Mesa	$67,310	Not Rated	D
85	San Francisco Va Medical Center San Francisco	San Francisco	$67,442	★★★★☆	C
86	Children's Hosp Of Los Angeles Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$67,591	Not Rated	D
87	Huntington Hospital Pasadena	Pasadena	$67,700	★★☆☆☆	D
88	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Marcos San Marcos	San Marcos	$68,524	Not Rated	D
89	Kaiser Foundation Hospital-San Jose San Jose	San Jose	$68,702	★★★★☆	C
90	Glendale Mem Hospital & Hlth Center Glendale	Glendale	$68,723	★★★☆☆	C
91	Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$68,851	★★★★★	B
92	Arrowhead Regional Medical Center Colton	Colton	$69,145	★★☆☆☆	D
93	Desert Valley Hospital Victorville	Victorville	$69,365	★★★☆☆	D
94	Torrance Memorial Medical Center Torrance	Torrance	$69,483	★★★★☆	B
95	Sonoma Valley Hospital Sonoma	Sonoma	$69,715	★☆☆☆☆	D
96	Sutter Solano Medical Center Vallejo	Vallejo	$70,369	★★★☆☆	D
97	Anaheim Community Hospital, Llc Anaheim	Anaheim	$70,688	Not Rated	D
98	Kaiser Permanente Psychiatric Health Facility-Sant Santa Clara	Santa Clara	$70,795	Not Rated	D
99	Providence Redwood Memorial Hospital Fortuna	Fortuna	$70,909	Not Rated	D
100	Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center Pomona	Pomona	$70,925	★★★☆☆	C
101	Palomar Health Downtown Campus Escondido	Escondido	$71,077	★★☆☆☆	D
102	St Joseph's Medical Center Of Stockton Stockton	Stockton	$71,186	★★★★☆	C
103	Menifee Global Medical Center Sun City	Sun City	$71,540	Not Rated	D
104	Adventist Health Vallejo Vallejo	Vallejo	$71,832	Not Rated	D
105	Eastern Plumas Hospital - Portola Campus Portola	Portola	$71,889	Not Rated	D
106	Seneca District Hospital Chester	Chester	$71,986	Not Rated	D
107	Casa Colina Hospital Pomona	Pomona	$72,126	★★★☆☆	D
108	Highland Hospital Oakland	Oakland	$72,465	★☆☆☆☆	F
109	Jewish Home & Rehab Center San Francisco	San Francisco	$72,621	Not Rated	D
110	Docs Surgical Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$72,722	Not Rated	D
111	Grossmont Hospital La Mesa	La Mesa	$72,795	★★★☆☆	C
112	Va Long Beach Healthcare System Long Beach	Long Beach	$73,057	★★★☆☆	C
113	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Roseville Roseville	Roseville	$73,091	★★★★☆	C
114	St Rose Hospital Hayward	Hayward	$73,111	★☆☆☆☆	D
115	Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hosp & Trauma Ctr San Francisco	San Francisco	$73,113	★☆☆☆☆	D
116	Aurora Behavioral Healthcare-Santa Rosa, Llc Santa Rosa	Santa Rosa	$73,444	Not Rated	D
117	Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hsp At Stanford Palo Alto	Palo Alto	$73,675	Not Rated	D
118	Providence St Mary Medical Center Apple Valley	Apple Valley	$73,689	★☆☆☆☆	F
119	Corona Regional Medical Center Corona	Corona	$73,840	★★★☆☆	D
120	Santa Barbara County Psychiatric Health Facility Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara	$74,387	Not Rated	D
121	Mercy Medical Center Redding Redding	Redding	$74,523	★★☆☆☆	D
122	Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley Pleasanton	Pleasanton	$74,705	★★★★☆	C
123	Catalina Island Medical Center Avalon	Avalon	$74,866	Not Rated	D
124	John C Fremont Healthcare District Mariposa	Mariposa	$75,087	Not Rated	C
125	Riverside University Health System-Medical Center Moreno Valley	Moreno Valley	$75,107	★★★☆☆	C
126	Community Hospital Of San Bernardino San Bernardino	San Bernardino	$75,231	★★★☆☆	C
127	Coast Plaza Hospital Norwalk	Norwalk	$75,747	★☆☆☆☆	F
128	Porterville Developmental Center Porterville	Porterville	$76,020	Not Rated	C
129	Stanislaus Surgical Hospital Modesto	Modesto	$77,093	Not Rated	D
130	Children's Hospital Of Orange County Orange	Orange	$77,153	Not Rated	D
131	Telecare Heritage Psychiatric Health Facility Oakland	Oakland	$77,294	Not Rated	D
132	Saint Francis Medical Center Lynwood	Lynwood	$77,297	★★★★☆	B
133	Scripps Mercy Hospital San Diego	San Diego	$77,379	★★★☆☆	D
134	Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$77,444	★★★☆☆	C
135	Sierra View Medical Center Porterville	Porterville	$77,808	★★☆☆☆	F
136	Uci Health - Los Alamitos Los Alamitos	Los Alamitos	$77,837	★★★☆☆	D
137	Adventist Health Lodi Memorial Lodi	Lodi	$77,857	★★★☆☆	D
138	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Downey Downey	Downey	$77,913	★★☆☆☆	D
139	Providence Mission Hospital Mission Viejo	Mission Viejo	$77,928	★★★★☆	C
140	Usc Verdugo Hills Hospital Glendale	Glendale	$78,027	★★★☆☆	C
141	Providence Little Co Of Mary Med Ctr San Pedro San Pedro	San Pedro	$78,079	★★★★☆	C
142	Southern California Hospital At Hollywood Hollywood	Hollywood	$78,182	★★★★☆	C
143	Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley	Berkeley	$78,587	★★★☆☆	D
144	Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$79,354	★★★☆☆	D
145	Sutter Davis Hospital Davis	Davis	$79,717	★★★★☆	C
146	Willow Rock Center San Leandro	San Leandro	$79,746	Not Rated	F
147	Emanate Health Foothill Presbyterian Hospital Glendora	Glendora	$79,875	★★★☆☆	C
148	Adventist Health And Rideout Marysville	Marysville	$80,131	★★☆☆☆	D
149	Adventist Health White Memorial Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$80,399	★★★☆☆	C
150	California Pacific Medical Center - Mission Bernal San Francisco	San Francisco	$80,454	★★★★☆	C
151	Pih Health Good Samaritan Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$80,928	★★☆☆☆	F
152	French Hospital Medical Center San Luis Obispo	San Luis Obispo	$81,141	★★★★★	C
153	Sequoia Hospital Redwood City	Redwood City	$81,196	★★★★★	B
154	Va San Diego Healthcare System San Diego	San Diego	$82,041	★★★★★	B
155	Canyon Ridge Hospital Chino	Chino	$82,541	Not Rated	D
156	Community Regional Medical Center Fresno	Fresno	$83,032	★☆☆☆☆	F
157	Kaiser Foundation Hospital-Santa Rosa Santa Rosa	Santa Rosa	$83,199	★★★★☆	C
158	Mercy Hospital Bakersfield	Bakersfield	$83,452	★★★☆☆	C
159	Colusa Medical Center Colusa	Colusa	$83,555	★★★★☆	D
160	Memorialcare Orange Coast Medical Center Fountain Valley	Fountain Valley	$83,940	★★★☆☆	D
161	Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital Hollister	Hollister	$84,075	Not Rated	D
162	Uci Health - Placentia Linda Placentia	Placentia	$84,558	★★☆☆☆	F
163	Loma Linda University Medical Center Loma Linda	Loma Linda	$84,568	★★★☆☆	C
164	Gateways Hosp Mental Health Ctr Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$84,908	Not Rated	D
165	Ocean View Psychiatric Health Facility Long Beach	Long Beach	$85,171	Not Rated	D
166	Valley Children's Hospital Madera	Madera	$85,195	Not Rated	D
167	Memorial Care Miller Children's & Women's Hosp Lb Long Beach	Long Beach	$85,454	Not Rated	D
168	John Muir Medical Center - Walnut Creek Campus Walnut Creek	Walnut Creek	$85,495	★★★☆☆	C
169	Scripps Memorial Hospital - Encinitas Encinitas	Encinitas	$85,502	★★★★★	B
170	Garden Grove Hospital & Medical Center Garden Grove	Garden Grove	$86,169	★★★☆☆	D
171	Ucla West Valley Medical Center West Hills	West Hills	$86,529	★★☆☆☆	D
172	Providence St. Jude Medical Center Fullerton	Fullerton	$86,549	★★★★☆	D
173	California Pacific Medical Ctr-Davies Campus Hosp San Francisco	San Francisco	$86,800	★★★☆☆	D
174	Santa Cruz County Psychiatric Health Facility Santa Cruz	Santa Cruz	$86,802	Not Rated	F
175	Adventist Health Hanford Hanford	Hanford	$87,353	★★☆☆☆	D
176	Doctors Hospital Of Manteca Manteca	Manteca	$87,840	★★☆☆☆	D
177	Glendale Adventist Medical Center Glendale	Glendale	$87,921	★★★★☆	C
178	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Antioch Antioch	Antioch	$88,649	★★★☆☆	D
179	Bhc Sierra Vista Hospital, Inc Sacramento	Sacramento	$88,852	Not Rated	D
180	Adventist Health Sonora Sonora	Sonora	$89,413	★★★☆☆	D
181	Nmc San Diego San Diego	San Diego	$89,661	Not Rated	D
182	Providence Cedars Sinai Tarzana Medical Center Tarzana	Tarzana	$90,172	★★★☆☆	D
183	Patients' Hospital Of Redding Redding	Redding	$90,916	Not Rated	D
184	Ronald Reagan Ucla Medical Center Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$91,051	★★★★☆	C
185	60th Medical Group (travis Afb) Travis Afb	Travis Afb	$91,910	Not Rated	D
186	Chino Valley Medical Center Chino	Chino	$92,269	★★☆☆☆	D
187	Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma	Petaluma	$92,330	★★★★☆	D
188	Aliso Ridge Behavioral Health, Llc Aliso Viejo	Aliso Viejo	$92,412	Not Rated	F
189	East Los Angeles Doctors Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$92,999	Not Rated	D
190	College Medical Center Long Beach	Long Beach	$93,532	★★☆☆☆	F
191	Mad River Community Hospital Arcata	Arcata	$93,757	★★★☆☆	F
192	Sherman Oaks Hospital Sherman Oaks	Sherman Oaks	$94,031	★★☆☆☆	D
193	Kaiser Foundation Hosp So Sacramento Sacramento	Sacramento	$94,647	★★★☆☆	D
194	Hoag Orthopedic Institute Irvine	Irvine	$94,699	Not Rated	F
195	Centinela Hospital Medical Center Inglewood	Inglewood	$95,015	★★☆☆☆	D
196	Providence Holy Cross Medical Center Mission Hills	Mission Hills	$96,099	★★★★☆	C
197	Heritage Oaks Hospital Sacramento	Sacramento	$96,673	Not Rated	D
198	Desert Regional Medical Center Palm Springs	Palm Springs	$96,763	★★☆☆☆	D
199	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Woodland Hills Woodland Hills	Woodland Hills	$96,804	★★★☆☆	D
200	Adventist Health Tehachapi Valley Tehachapi	Tehachapi	$99,223	Not Rated	D
201	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fresno Fresno	Fresno	$100,209	★★★★☆	D
202	Aurora Las Encinas Pasadena	Pasadena	$100,235	Not Rated	D
203	Pacific Grove Hospital Riverside	Riverside	$100,443	Not Rated	D
204	Enloe Health Chico	Chico	$101,995	★★☆☆☆	D
205	San Dimas Community Hospital San Dimas	San Dimas	$104,321	★☆☆☆☆	F
206	Orange County Global Medical Center Santa Ana	Santa Ana	$106,505	★★☆☆☆	D
207	Anaheim Global Medical Center Anaheim	Anaheim	$106,891	Not Rated	D
208	Los Angeles Community Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$108,695	★★☆☆☆	F
209	Kaiser Foundation Hospital - West La Los Angeles	Los Angeles	$118,257	★★★☆☆	D

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does respiratory system diagnosis with ventilator support >96 hours cost in California?

Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours (DRG 208) averages $72,556 in total Medicare payment across 209 California hospitals reporting this code. Within the state, payments span $37,445 to $118,257 — about 3× from cheapest to most expensive.

Is Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours more or less expensive in California than nationally?

California's state-level average of $72,556 sits well above the national Medicare average of $53,417 for this DRG. State differences are driven primarily by the regional Medicare wage index, case mix, and the share of high-acuity referral hospitals.

Why is the spread between hospitals so wide?

Variation within a state runs 3× because the same DRG can come with different lengths of stay, complication adjustments, teaching-status add-ons, and outlier payments. The CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule publishes machine-readable rate files that allow direct comparisons against negotiated commercial rates, which often differ from Medicare totals.

Are these the prices a privately insured patient would pay?

No. Figures here are Medicare DRG payments. Privately insured patients are billed under their plan's negotiated network rate, published in each hospital's price-transparency file. Uninsured patients should ask the hospital for the cash-pay rate, also disclosed under federal price-transparency rules.

Should I choose a hospital based only on price?

No. HospitalCostData is informational. Surgeon experience, hospital volume for the procedure, complication rates, and your specific clinical situation matter at least as much as price. Always discuss options with your physician and review CMS Care Compare quality data alongside any pricing benchmark.

See the methodology page for DRG sourcing and Medicare wage-index context.

Sources & Citations

CMS Medicare Inpatient Hospital Payments (IPPS). DRG-level average covered charges, total payments, and Medicare payments per facility. data.cms.gov
CMS Hospital Compare (Care Compare). Star ratings, mortality, readmission, safety-of-care, and patient-experience measures. medicare.gov/care-compare
CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule. Standard charge files required from every Medicare-participating hospital. cms.gov/hospital-price-transparency
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). National benchmarks, quality indicators, and clinical context for hospital outcome measures. ahrq.gov

Dataset last refreshed: April 2026. Underlying CMS files are public domain. Suggested citation: “HospitalCostData, hospitalcostdata.com, accessed May 24, 2026.”

This page is informational only and does not constitute medical, legal, or financial advice. Care decisions should be made with a licensed physician.

Source: CMS Hospital Price Transparency, 2026.