MS‑DRG 856: Postoperative or Post-Traumatic Infections with O.R. Procedures with MCC

What Medicare paid hospitals for MS‑DRG 856 in 2024: nationally, state by state and across hospitals.

Paid per case$39,8602.6× the all-DRG average

Discharges2,6620.05% of all Medicare discharges

Total paid$106.1M125th largest MS‑DRG by spending

Hospitals166in 43 states and DC

Charges ÷ paid5.9×$235,440 average charge

Relative weight4.4826FY2027, 8.8-day geometric mean stay; FY2026 4.5487 (−1.5%)

In 2024 Medicare paid hospitals an average of $39,860 per discharge for MS‑DRG 856, across 2,662 fee-for-service discharges at 166 hospitals: 0.05% of all Medicare inpatient discharges and $106.1M in total, the 125th largest MS‑DRG by Medicare spending.

By state, the average ran from $24,389 in New Mexico to $60,031 in Oregon. Across hospitals, half were paid between $29,936 and $42,426 per case, and the median hospital $35,656; the payment moves with each hospital’s wage index, teaching and low-income share, and with outlier cases.

Hospitals charged $235,440 on average for these stays, 5.9 times what Medicare paid: charges are list prices, while Medicare pays a fixed amount per MS‑DRG.

See MS‑DRG 856 on the interactive map Price an MS‑DRG 856 claim at any hospital Every MS‑DRG

What changed in FY2027

The rates for discharges from October 1, 2026 (MS‑DRG version 44) against FY2026.

MS‑DRG 856, FY2026 and FY2027
	FY2026	FY2027	Change
Relative weight	4.5487	4.4826	−1.5%
Geometric mean stay (days)	9.1	8.8	−0.3
Average stay (days)	12.1	11.7	−0.4

Not capped: the −1.5% is CMS’s yearly recalibration of every weight from recent claims and cost data.
Name, MDC and transfer status are unchanged.

FY2027 national base payment (illustration)

$33,117.22

The FY2027 weight times the operating standardized amount and the capital rate ($6,848.00 + $539.95) at a wage index of 1.0. No IME, DSH, outlier or other hospital-specific adjustment, so it is not what any hospital is paid; price it at a hospital for that.

FY2027 national base payment across the severity levels of MS‑DRG 856
MS‑DRG	Severity	Payment ($)	Step ($)
856	with MCC	33,117.22	—
857	with CC	16,015.60	−17,101.62
858	without CC/MCC	10,369.73	−22,747.49

FY2027 inpatient rates: what else changed on October 1 · Price MS‑DRG 856 at a hospital

Paid per case, by state

MS‑DRG 856 by state, 2024
State	Paid per case	Discharges	Hospitals	Charges ÷ paid
Oregon	$60,031	15	1	3.3×
Maine	$59,033	15	1	4.1×
California	$58,373	216	13	7.8×
Maryland*	$58,224	72	5	1.1×
Alabama	$53,942	28	2	7.4×
New York	$49,699	123	7	6.6×
Massachusetts	$49,699	102	5	3.8×
Pennsylvania	$44,009	142	9	7.9×
Connecticut	$43,217	33	2	4.6×
Missouri	$42,637	68	5	4.3×
Iowa	$41,224	20	1	4.9×
Delaware	$41,060	20	1	3.5×
Wisconsin	$40,464	38	2	4.2×
Virginia	$40,321	47	3	5.0×
District of Columbia	$40,256	46	2	5.6×
Utah	$39,805	26	2	2.5×
Illinois	$39,605	140	11	5.7×
South Carolina	$39,165	59	3	6.2×
Nevada	$38,290	25	2	5.6×
New Jersey	$37,928	45	3	6.1×
Minnesota	$37,636	112	5	3.5×
Arizona	$37,228	87	6	4.4×
Ohio	$35,248	140	8	5.3×
Texas	$34,672	171	10	8.3×
Washington	$33,617	40	3	4.7×
Nebraska	$33,576	30	2	3.6×
North Dakota	$32,642	15	1	3.0×
North Carolina	$32,508	53	3	5.2×
Michigan	$32,392	25	2	3.7×
Florida	$32,270	215	12	8.1×
Georgia	$31,901	77	6	6.6×
Tennessee	$31,834	46	3	5.5×
Colorado	$31,793	68	5	8.6×
Oklahoma	$31,684	66	4	7.2×
Indiana	$31,455	54	4	4.8×
West Virginia	$30,952	26	2	4.7×
Kansas	$30,403	50	2	8.4×
South Dakota	$30,268	12	1	5.3×
Kentucky	$29,228	28	2	5.5×
Louisiana	$29,174	11	1	3.6×
Arkansas	$27,237	13	1	5.4×
Vermont	$26,284	14	1	5.6×
Mississippi	$25,179	11	1	3.2×
New Mexico	$24,389	18	1	3.1×
United States	$39,860	2,662	166	5.9×

* Maryland hospitals are paid under the state’s all-payer model, not the IPPS, so Maryland is left out of the state range above.

How much hospitals vary

Each hospital’s own average Medicare payment for MS‑DRG 856.

10th percentile	$27,296
25th percentile	$29,936
Median hospital	$35,656
75th percentile	$42,426
90th percentile	$57,206

Related analysis

Transfers and the per-diem rule: when a short stay pays less than the full DRG · Inpatient DRG
DRG validation and the single-MCC claim: when one code moves the payment · Payment integrity

The same condition at other severities

857Postoperative or Post-Traumatic Infections with O.R. Procedures with CC · $18,673

Questions

What did Medicare pay for MS‑DRG 856 in 2024?

An average of $39,860 per discharge across 2,662 fee-for-service discharges at 166 hospitals, $106.1M in total.

Which state paid the most for MS‑DRG 856?

Oregon, at $60,031 per case; New Mexico paid the least, $24,389.

Where do these figures come from?

From the Medicare Inpatient Hospitals - by Provider and Service (data year 2024): the published hospital-by-DRG averages of Medicare fee-for-service inpatient discharges in 2024. Cells with fewer than 11 discharges are not published, so a hospital with a handful of cases is not counted. Average Medicare payment excludes the patient’s deductible and coinsurance.