Healthcare Insights
Medical specialties with the highest average charges
Health insurance plans negotiate reimbursement and coverage with healthcare provider organizations. As hospitals have moved to value-based care models, and concerns grow over unmanageable healthcare costs, understanding service line revenue, charges, and expenses is crucial to measuring hospital financial performance.
Which types of services cost the most?
As healthcare reforms, like hospital price transparency, take off in the industry, healthcare organizations looking to expand may be interested in targeting services and specialties associated with the highest charges.
Using data from the Definitive Healthcare Atlas All-Payor Claims dataset, we analyzed claims for medical specialties containing more than 100 providers in the platform. The data in the chart below is representative of claims filed in 2024 through December.
| Rank | Medical specialty | Number of providers | Average charges per provider | Explore dataset |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiac Surgery | 915 | $32,599 | Explore |
| 2 | Internal Medicine | 82,482 | $30,428 | Explore |
| 3 | Thoracic Surgery | 2,717 | $20,005 | Explore |
| 4 | Nephrology | 12,344 | $17,839 | Explore |
| 5 | Trauma Surgery | 105 | $16,158 | Explore |
| 6 | Pediatric Critical Care | 2,551 | $12,773 | Explore |
| 7 | Hematology | 508 | $11,409 | Explore |
| 8 | Gynecological Oncology | 783 | $9,604 | Explore |
| 9 | Neurosurgery | 5,746 | $9,526 | Explore |
| 10 | Surgical Oncology | 537 | $8,927 | Explore |
| 11 | Critical Care | 2,223 | $8,682 | Explore |
| 12 | Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine | 7,543 | $8,640 | Explore |
| 13 | Medical Oncology | 2,060 | $8,201 | Explore |
| 14 | Pediatric Oncology | 2,103 | $7,305 | Explore |
| 15 | Pediatric Surgery | 1,106 | $6,989 | Explore |
| 16 | Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery | 5,708 | $6,401 | Explore |
| 17 | General Surgery | 25,049 | $5,951 | Explore |
| 18 | Oncology | 13,323 | $5,531 | Explore |
| 19 | Hospital Medicine | 50,868 | $5,264 | Explore |
| 20 | Colorectal Surgery | 1,912 | $5,050 | Explore |
| 21 | Pediatric Nephrology | 497 | $4,358 | Explore |
| 22 | Orthopedic Surgery | 24,917 | $4,036 | Explore |
| 23 | Interventional Cardiology | 400 | $3,709 | Explore |
| 24 | Radiation Oncology | 5,482 | $3,632 | Explore |
| 25 | Pediatric Rheumatology | 356 | $3,424 | Explore |
Fig. 1 Data is from the Definitive Healthcare Atlas All-Payor Claims dataset. Data represents claims filed in 2024 through December. Data accessed April 2025.
Which providers charge the most?
Healthcare providers in the cardiac surgery specialty had the highest average charge per provider at $32,599. Cardiac surgery is a subspecialty of the broader cardiology field. Cardiac surgeries tend to be high-risk, often involving open chest procedures. The highly skilled care team required for cardiac surgery, as well as the long procedure and recovery times required, likely contribute to the high cost of related procedures.
The second top medical specialty with the highest average charges per provider was internal medicine at $30,427. Internal medicine is a broad medical specialty, and many physicians certified in internal medicine are also certified in other specialties known for top-dollar procedures, such as cardiology, nephrology, or oncology.
Thoracic surgery is the third top medical specialty by average charges, with an average charge of $20,005 per provider. Because thoracic services involve treating many issues with the chest, including the heart, lungs, and throat, the procedures tend to involve a mix of high-risk open and non-invasive surgeries, likely contributing to thoracic surgery being a high-cost specialty.
Why are physician specialties important?
Physician specialties are a critical component in providing high-quality, focused care for patients with a wide variety of health concerns. By allowing providers to focus on particular medical specialties and subspecialties, they can develop specialized knowledge to treat particular patient cohorts.
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Healthcare Insights are developed with healthcare commercial intelligence from the Definitive Healthcare platform. Want even more insights? Start a free trial now and get access to the latest healthcare commercial intelligence on hospitals, physicians, and other healthcare providers.
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