Surgical Hospital Stay Costs
403 Diagnosis-Related Groups with average charges, Medicare payments, and length of stay
What is a DRG?
A Diagnosis-Related Group (DRG) is how Medicare classifies hospital inpatient stays for payment purposes. Each DRG groups patients with similar diagnoses and treatments, establishing a standard payment amount regardless of the actual costs incurred by the hospital.
Average Medicare Payment
The amount Medicare pays the hospital for this DRG. This is a national average — actual payments vary by hospital wage index, teaching status, and case mix.
Average Length of Stay
The typical number of days patients spend in the hospital for this DRG. Hospitals receive the same DRG payment whether the stay is shorter or longer than average.
Surgical vs. Medical
Surgical DRGs involve operating room procedures. Medical DRGs are for non-surgical hospital stays. Surgical DRGs generally have higher payments due to greater resource use.