CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, lower back (no contrast)

Facility: Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center

Billing Code: 72148 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$357

about 1.5× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $231–$452

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$326

About the fair price

about $31 under the fair price · 1.3× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $357 This hospital $326 Cash price $561 Hospital's list price $2,671

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other LA hospitals

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

Cheapest $119 Priciest $326

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

A fair price for a MRI, lower back (no contrast) is about $357 (about 1.5× the $244 Medicare rate). Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center charges insurers about $326, or about $561 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Lafayette, LA.

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✓ 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	$220 - $326	90%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$220 - $903	90%
Aetnamajor	$220 - $1,221	90%
Cignamajor	$220 - $1,553	90%
Humanamajor	$220 - $326	90%
AmeriHealth	$326	134%
WellCare	$231	95%
+ 6 smaller / regional plans	$220 - $1,442

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

Excludes 1 rental-network / third-party entry (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 561), 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 Ochsner Lafayette General 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 Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center

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

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