CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, lower back (no contrast)

Facility: Whittier Hospital Medical Center

Billing Code: 72148 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$375

about 1.5× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $290–$418

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$377

About the fair price

about $2 over the fair price · 1.5× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $375 This hospital $377 Cash price $794 Hospital's list price $5,883

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 $60 Priciest $377

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

A fair price for a MRI, lower back (no contrast) is about $375 (about 1.5× the $244 Medicare rate). Whittier Hospital Medical Center charges insurers about $377, or about $794 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Whittier, CA.

What each insurance company pays

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

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

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

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	$376 - $2,900	154%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$54 - $5,268	22%
Aetnamajor	$302 - $3,500	124%
Cignamajor	$1,940	796%
Humanamajor	$302	124%
Kaiser Permanentemajor	$186 - $4,118	76%
Health Net	$186 - $3,954	76%
Molina	$317 - $478	130%
Presbyterian	$826	339%
Sentara	$260 - $302	107%
+ 51 smaller / regional plans	$75 - $5,883

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Medicaid, Military & VA.

Excludes 6 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 794), 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: 72148.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Whittier Hospital Medical Center is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 72148.
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 Whittier Hospital Medical Center

Compare: MRI, lower back (no contrast) at other CA hospitals

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