# Why aren't these joint procedures approved or covered? *Does Insurance Cover Stem Cell Therapy? - stem cell therapy Chandler* > Does insurance cover stem cell therapy, and how much does stem cell therapy cost? See what cash prices may include and which questions clarify the bill. The ache may be easy to describe while the bill remains hard to follow. A quoted price can leave out X-rays, scans, later visits, or another procedure. Insurance coverage and approval are separate questions. Get both answers in writing before paying. ## Does insurance cover stem cell therapy? Insurance does not cover these same-day cell procedures for joint use, and Medicare takes the same position. Insurers call them investigational, meaning they are still being studied for this use. You pay cash for the procedure. Coverage for the exam, X-ray, or scan may differ. Call your insurer before the visit and ask which services it will cover. Ask the clinic whether it will bill any service to your plan. A general statement about coverage isn't enough. Request your plan's written list of covered services. ## How much does stem cell therapy cost? Published advertised prices have ranged from $2,950 to $25,000, with an average of $11,322. Those figures aren't a Chandler quote. Your total depends on the joint, what the procedure uses, and later care. Ask for one written total. The total needs to list the exam, any X-ray or scan, the procedure, and later visits. Ask whether another procedure could add to the bill. The first quote may not include everything. Read each charge before deciding. ## What can the clinic tell you before you pay? QC Kinetix can explain regenerative treatments, clinic procedures using your own blood, marrow, or fat. A medical provider examines you, gives care, and discusses whether the exam supports one. Ask what the procedure uses and why it is being offered. No one can know beforehand what change you might notice. The exam may support a choice, but it can't promise a result. If the price or explanation isn't clear, pause before paying. Take the written details home and read them slowly. ## Sources 1. FDA states in its consumer alert that the only FDA-approved stem cell products in the United States are blood-forming stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood, approved for disorders of the blood-forming system, and that NONE of these products - stem cells, stromal vascular fraction, umbilical cord blood, Wharton's jelly or amniotic fluid - has been approved for the treatment of any orthopedic condition, including osteoarthritis, tendonitis, disc disease, tennis elbow, back pain, hip pain, knee pain, neck pain or shoulder pain. US Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research — [Consumer Alert on Regenerative Medicine Products Including Stem Cells and Exosomes](https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/consumers-biologics/consumer-alert-regenerative-medicine-products-including-stem-cells-and-exosomes). *null*, 2020. 2. 21 CFR 1271.10(a) sets the four criteria a human cell or tissue product must meet to be regulated SOLELY under section 361 of the Public Health Service Act: it must be minimally manipulated; intended for homologous use only, as reflected by labeling and advertising; not combined with another article beyond water, crystalloids or a preserving agent; and either have no systemic effect and not depend on the metabolic activity of living cells, or else be for autologous use, use in a close blood relative, or reproductive use. US Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21 — [21 CFR 1271.10 - Are my HCT/P's regulated solely under section 361 of the PHS Act](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/chapter-I/subchapter-L/part-1271/subpart-A/section-1271.10). *null*, 2004. 3. On 27 September 2024 the Ninth Circuit held in United States v. California Stem Cell Treatment Center that stromal vascular fraction produced by enzymatically digesting a patient's own fat IS a drug under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and that the same surgical procedure exception does not apply because the removed fat and the implanted SVF are not the same thing. The district court's ruling for the clinics was reversed. United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit — [United States v. California Stem Cell Treatment Center, Inc., No. 22-56014 (9th Cir. Sept. 27, 2024)](https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2024/09/27/22-56014.pdf). *null*, 2024. 4. MACI is FDA-licensed (STN BL 125603, Vericel Corporation) and is indicated for the repair of symptomatic, single or multiple FULL-THICKNESS cartilage defects of the knee with or without bone involvement in adults - a focal defect repair performed surgically, not a treatment for osteoarthritis and not an injection. US Food and Drug Administration — [MACI (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane)](https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/cellular-gene-therapy-products/maci-autologous-cultured-chondrocytes-porcine-collagen-membrane). *null*, 2016. 5. FDA's list of licensed cellular and gene therapy products is the checkable public record of what has actually been approved; the orthopedic entry on it is MACI (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane), and the cord blood entries (HEMACORD, ALLOCORD, DUCORD and others) are hematopoietic products for blood disorders, not joint treatments. US Food and Drug Administration, Office of Therapeutic Products — [Approved Cellular and Gene Therapy Products](https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/cellular-gene-therapy-products/approved-cellular-and-gene-therapy-products). *null*, 2026. 6. An analysis of 38 businesses advertising stem cell and exosome products for COVID-19 found listed prices from $2,950 to $25,000 with an average of $11,322 - a direct measure of what this marketplace charges for products with no regulatory approval. Turner L, et al. — [Businesses marketing purported stem cell treatments and exosome therapies for COVID-19: An analysis of direct-to-consumer online advertising claims](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37890484/). *Stem Cell Reports*, 2023. DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2023.09.015. 7. In a 480-patient, four-arm, multicenter randomized phase 2/3 trial, none of three orthobiologic cell injections - autologous bone marrow aspirate concentrate, autologous adipose stromal vascular fraction, or allogeneic umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells - was superior to any other, or to a corticosteroid injection control, on pain at 12 months. Mautner K, et al. — [Cell-based versus corticosteroid injections for knee pain in osteoarthritis: a randomized phase 3 trial](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37919438/). *Nat Med*, 2023. DOI: 10.1038/s41591-023-02632-w. 8. The 2018 AAOS/NIH consensus work group recommended that minimally manipulated mixed cell preparations be called CELL THERAPY rather than stem cell therapy, and that their untested and uncharacterised nature be clearly communicated to patients and the public, because stem cells have properties these preparations do not meet. Chu CR, et al. — [Optimizing Clinical Use of Biologics in Orthopaedic Surgery: Consensus Recommendations From the 2018 AAOS/NIH U-13 Conference](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30300216/). *J Am Acad Orthop Surg*, 2019. DOI: 10.5435/JAAOS-D-18-00305. ## What happens at an appointment? The owners who run the QC Kinetix Phoenix-area clinics also operate this site, and they charge nothing for the consultation. A medical provider, the person who examines you and gives care, checks the joint and asks how soreness changes your day. The provider explains which non-surgical choices may be suitable and when other care makes more sense. The Chandler location is on South Dobson Road, just south of Pecos. Call (602) 837-PAIN to reach any of the four Valley locations. Take your questions, recent X-rays or scan reports, and a current medicine list. You can write down the answers. An appointment provides an exam and information, not a promised result. Ask what the exam showed, what it only suggests, and what remains unknown. Then you can weigh the choices with your own doctor. Book a free consultation: --- Plain guidance when a joint aches. Plain guidance for aching joints, with simple relief measures, urgent symptoms, non-surgical choices, and an explanation of the clinic visit. Plain information about aching joints, simple relief measures, urgent symptoms, and non-surgical choices in Chandler. This site is operated by the owners of the QC Kinetix clinics in the Phoenix area - a non-surgical joint pain practice with locations in Chandler, Scottsdale, Peoria and at Banner Estrella - and it says so on every page, because the interest sitting behind what you are reading is part of what you are reading. © 2026 Before the Injection · Chandler, Arizona · Published information, not medical advice.