CMS Price Transparency Data

CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine)

Facility: Adventist Health Bakersfield

Billing Code: 72131 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$170

about 1.6× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $116–$238

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$134

Below the fair price — a good deal

about $36 under the fair price · 1.3× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $170 This hospital $134 Cash price $257 Hospital's list price $1,713

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other CA hospitals

Highest price of the 9 CA hospitals we have prices for — worth calling around.

Cheapest $32 Priciest $134

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 CA hospitals with a price for this procedure. Full list below.

A fair price for a CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) is about $170 (about 1.6× the $107 Medicare rate). Adventist Health Bakersfield charges insurers about $134, or about $257 in cash — below the fair price — a good deal. Located in Bakersfield, CA.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

5 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna✓ Kaiser Permanente Humana

Crossed out = this hospital hasn’t published a negotiated price for that insurer for this procedure. It doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t accepted — ask your insurer.

Insurance company	Price range	vs. Medicare
UnitedHealthcaremajor	$47 - $1,749	44%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$47 - $1,485	44%
Aetnamajor	$57 - $1,019	53%
Cignamajor	$26 - $610	24%
Kaiser Permanentemajor	$134 - $232	125%
Health Net	$47 - $276	44%
Oscar Health	$47 - $215	44%
+ 16 smaller / regional plans	$47 - $3,220

Government programs also on file: Medicaid.

Excludes 8 rental-network / third-party entries (e.g. Multiplan, PHCS) — these are pricing networks, not insurers.

Self-Pay How to get the cash price

Tell the billing desk you want to be billed as self-pay — not through insurance — before your visit.
Ask for the cash / prompt-pay discount in writing, with the exact price (about 257), before you agree to anything.
Get it in writing that they won’t also bill your insurance, so the cash price is what you owe.
Check the CPT code on your bill matches exactly: 72131.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Adventist Health Bakersfield is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 72131.
Confirm the doctor or provider is in-network too — not just the hospital building.
Check your Explanation of Benefits against the hospital’s final itemized bill.

Estimate your out-of-pocket cost

A rough estimate of what you’d pay with insurance (deductible + coinsurance) versus paying the cash price yourself.

How you’d pay

Deductible left to meet ($)

Your coinsurance (%)

Enter your details and press estimate to compare.

Other Procedures at Adventist Health Bakersfield

Compare: CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) at other CA hospitals

Insurance negotiated median for the same procedure, sorted lowest first.