Coronary artery bypass grafts: 1990 charges update

During 1990, coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) operation charges among MetLife group health policyholders and dependents averaged $43,370. Among the 16 states with at least 50 CABGs, the total charges ranged from a high of $59,870 in California, to a low of $32,500 in Wisconsin. Three-fourths of the total was due to the hospital bill, with wide variation by state. The New York hospital proportion of total charges was the lowest (64 percent), whereas hospital charges in Alabama averaged 80 percent of the bill for a CABG. Physician charges averaged $11,220 across the country, ranging from $15,170 in California to $8,280 in Tennessee. Hospital stay averaged 11.6 days; patients in California and Alabama remained hospitalized for 10.2 and 10.3 days, respectively, whereas those in New Jersey had hospital stays of 16.1 days.