Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

DRG 207 addresses respiratory system diagnoses requiring invasive ventilator support for longer than 96 hours, encompassing severe respiratory failure and prolonged mechanical ventilation. This grouping matters for inpatient reimbursement because it signals high resource intensity and typically yields higher Medicare payment relative to less resource-intensive respiratory Diagnostic-Related Groups.

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DRG 207 Overview

DRG 207 covers inpatient cases for respiratory system diagnoses requiring invasive ventilator support for more than 96 hours, typically reflecting severe respiratory failure or acute respiratory distress. This Diagnosis-Related Group captures high-intensity resource use including prolonged mechanical ventilation, critical care, and complex monitoring. It matters for Medicare payment because it represents one of the higher-weighted Diagnosis-Related Groups due to extended intensive care needs and associated costs. Accurate clinical documentation and coding determine grouping and influence Medicare inpatient reimbursement.

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Respiratory System Diagnosis with Ventilator Support >96 Hours: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

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DRG 207 Overview

National Payment Rates

Across commercial payers the observed rate range spans roughly from $370 to $210K, with payer means ranging from $53K (BCBS) to $110K (Aetna). The widest spread between minimum and maximum reported values occurs with Anthem (min $390; max $210K). See the table and chart below for payer-specific quartiles and distribution details.

The CMS 2023 data summarize national Medicare fee-for-service inpatient payments reported under the CMS Provider Utilization and Payment Data program. The table below shows average total payment, average submitted covered charges, average Medicare payment amount, and total discharges for DRG 207. The figures reflect national-level payment and discharge counts for Medicare FFS beneficiaries in 2023.

Average Total Payment	Average Submitted Charges	Average Medicare Payment	Total Discharges
$59K	$280K	$52K	12K

Patient Population

The patient population for DRG 207 tends to skew toward Medicare-age beneficiaries rather than exclusively working-age adults, reflecting a predominantly older population mix. Commercial payers also cover a portion of cases, so the overall payer mix is mixed but Medicare-dominant. This distribution aligns with higher utilization among Medicare-eligible age groups and a smaller share of commercially insured, working-age patients.

State Payment Rates

State: Alaska1 / 49

Alaska Benchmarks

Payer rates for DRG 207 in Alaska span from $54K to $150K across reported payers, reflecting a wide in-state range. Cigna sits at the high end with a $150K mean while Anthem reports $100K and Blue Cross Blue Shield is at $54K, the latter representing the most pronounced deviation below common national averages. Reference the table and chart below for payer-specific percentiles and distributions.

Key Insights for Alaska

Highest payer: Cigna at $150K mean; Lowest payer: Anthem at $100K mean.
BCBS in Alaska pays a mean of $54K, notably below the national mean ranges and substantially lower than Cigna and Anthem in-state.
Overall state payer range spans from $54K to $150K, with Cigna materially above typical national means for this DRG.

Clinical Trials

Acute ventilator management and liberation strategies: randomized or prospective studies comparing approaches to mechanical ventilation (e.g., conservative vs. liberal settings, spontaneous breathing trial protocols, or early mobility combined with sedation protocols) in adult patients with primary respiratory diagnoses requiring invasive ventilation >96 hours. These trials enroll critically ill patients in the ICU early in their course to determine which ventilation and weaning strategies reduce ventilator days, ventilator-associated complications, and ICU length of stay. Results are directly relevant to clinicians and hospital payers because reducing time on the ventilator and ICU stay can lower complication rates, resource utilization, and total cost of care for this high-cost DRG group.
Comparative effectiveness and infection prevention studies for ventilator-associated events: multicenter observational cohorts or pragmatic trials testing interventions such as oral hygiene bundles, subglottic suctioning, optimized endotracheal tube cuff management, or antibiotic stewardship protocols in patients ventilated >96 hours for respiratory diagnoses. These studies focus on patients with prolonged mechanical ventilation who are at high risk for ventilator-associated pneumonia, sepsis, and multi-drug resistant infections, aiming to measure infection incidence, antimicrobial use, and attributable morbidity. Findings inform quality improvement, infection-control policies, and payer decisions around reimbursement incentives and bundled payments by identifying interventions that safely reduce complications and downstream costs.
Post-ICU recovery, functional outcomes, and readmission prevention studies: longitudinal cohort studies or randomized trials testing post-discharge interventions such as structured pulmonary rehabilitation, home mechanical ventilation follow-up programs, telemonitoring, or integrated transitional care models in survivors of respiratory failure who required >96 hours of ventilation. These studies enroll survivors at hospital discharge and track functional status, health-related quality of life, respiratory readmissions, and durable healthcare utilization over months to a year. For providers and payers, evidence from these trials highlights which post-acute care strategies improve long-term recovery, reduce readmissions, and influence total episode costs for patients classified under this DRG.

Related Codes

163-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITH-MCC

Major Chest Procedures with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

164-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITH-CC

Major Chest Procedures with CC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

165-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITHOUT-CC-MCC

Major Chest Procedures without CC/MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

166-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITH-MCC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

167-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITH-CC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures with CC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

168-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITHOUT-CC-MCC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures without CC/MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

173-ULTRASOUND-ACCELERATED-AND-OTHER-THROMBOLYSIS-WITH-PRINCIPAL-DIAGNOSIS-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM

Ultrasound Accelerated and Other Thrombolysis with Principal Diagnosis Pulmonary Embolism: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

175-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM-WITH-MCC-OR-ACUTE-COR-PULMONALE

Pulmonary Embolism with MCC or Acute Cor Pulmonale: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

176-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM-WITHOUT-MCC

Pulmonary Embolism without MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

177-RESPIRATORY-INFECTIONS-AND-INFLAMMATIONS-WITH-MCC

Respiratory Infections and Inflammations with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

Showing 1–10 of 40

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

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Trek Health ingests and normalizes Transparency in Coverage data and payer policy updates to give provider organizations a clear view of how commercial reimbursement behaves across markets, payers, and services. Our platform transforms raw payer disclosures into structured intelligence that supports contract evaluation, payer negotiations, and service line strategy. By combining market benchmarks with ongoing policy visibility, Trek helps teams identify variability, risk, and opportunity in commercial reimbursement. The result is faster insight, stronger negotiating positions, and more informed financial decisions.

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National Payment Rates

Mean Rates by Payer — National — DRG 207

Average Total Payment	Average Submitted Charges	Average Medicare Payment	Total Discharges
$59K	$280K	$52K	12K

Patient Population

State Payment Rates

State: Alaska1 / 49

Alaska Benchmarks

Mean Rates by Payer — Alaska — DRG 207

Key Insights for Alaska

Highest payer: Cigna at $150K mean; Lowest payer: Anthem at $100K mean.
BCBS in Alaska pays a mean of $54K, notably below the national mean ranges and substantially lower than Cigna and Anthem in-state.
Overall state payer range spans from $54K to $150K, with Cigna materially above typical national means for this DRG.

Clinical Trials

Acute ventilator management and liberation strategies: randomized or prospective studies comparing approaches to mechanical ventilation (e.g., conservative vs. liberal settings, spontaneous breathing trial protocols, or early mobility combined with sedation protocols) in adult patients with primary respiratory diagnoses requiring invasive ventilation >96 hours. These trials enroll critically ill patients in the ICU early in their course to determine which ventilation and weaning strategies reduce ventilator days, ventilator-associated complications, and ICU length of stay. Results are directly relevant to clinicians and hospital payers because reducing time on the ventilator and ICU stay can lower complication rates, resource utilization, and total cost of care for this high-cost DRG group.
Comparative effectiveness and infection prevention studies for ventilator-associated events: multicenter observational cohorts or pragmatic trials testing interventions such as oral hygiene bundles, subglottic suctioning, optimized endotracheal tube cuff management, or antibiotic stewardship protocols in patients ventilated >96 hours for respiratory diagnoses. These studies focus on patients with prolonged mechanical ventilation who are at high risk for ventilator-associated pneumonia, sepsis, and multi-drug resistant infections, aiming to measure infection incidence, antimicrobial use, and attributable morbidity. Findings inform quality improvement, infection-control policies, and payer decisions around reimbursement incentives and bundled payments by identifying interventions that safely reduce complications and downstream costs.
Post-ICU recovery, functional outcomes, and readmission prevention studies: longitudinal cohort studies or randomized trials testing post-discharge interventions such as structured pulmonary rehabilitation, home mechanical ventilation follow-up programs, telemonitoring, or integrated transitional care models in survivors of respiratory failure who required >96 hours of ventilation. These studies enroll survivors at hospital discharge and track functional status, health-related quality of life, respiratory readmissions, and durable healthcare utilization over months to a year. For providers and payers, evidence from these trials highlights which post-acute care strategies improve long-term recovery, reduce readmissions, and influence total episode costs for patients classified under this DRG.

Related Codes

163-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITH-MCC

Major Chest Procedures with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

164-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITH-CC

Major Chest Procedures with CC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

165-MAJOR-CHEST-PROCEDURES-WITHOUT-CC-MCC

Major Chest Procedures without CC/MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

166-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITH-MCC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

167-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITH-CC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures with CC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

168-OTHER-RESPIRATORY-SYSTEM-O-R-PROCEDURES-WITHOUT-CC-MCC

Other Respiratory System O.R. Procedures without CC/MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

173-ULTRASOUND-ACCELERATED-AND-OTHER-THROMBOLYSIS-WITH-PRINCIPAL-DIAGNOSIS-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM

Ultrasound Accelerated and Other Thrombolysis with Principal Diagnosis Pulmonary Embolism: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

175-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM-WITH-MCC-OR-ACUTE-COR-PULMONALE

Pulmonary Embolism with MCC or Acute Cor Pulmonale: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

176-PULMONARY-EMBOLISM-WITHOUT-MCC

Pulmonary Embolism without MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

177-RESPIRATORY-INFECTIONS-AND-INFLAMMATIONS-WITH-MCC

Respiratory Infections and Inflammations with MCC: Inpatient Reimbursement Overview

Showing 1–10 of 40

References

1.CPT® Codes and Descriptions. AAPC. Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.Maintains the CPT code set's official descriptions and guidelines, licensed from the American Medical Association, used as the definitional source for CPT codes on this page.
2.HCPCS Quarterly Update. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's quarterly release of HCPCS Level II codes and short/long descriptors, the source for HCPCS code definitions and update history.
3.ICD-10-CM Full Code List. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Retrieved Aug 11, 2026.CMS's complete ICD-10-CM diagnosis code list, used to cross-reference diagnosis codes associated with this procedure or service.

Published by

Trek Health powers OpenPayer with a leading commercial payer intelligence platform, seamlessly converting fragmented payer data into actionable insights for provider organizations.