Psychological testing evaluation cost in LA
What a psychological testing evaluation costs at LA hospitals — and the fair price to aim for.
Typical commercial prices here are 51% below the fair benchmark (0.49×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
Balances commercial hospital prices against CMS clinical safety, infection control, and patient experience.
Uniform Value Leader · Low-Cost Across Departments
This hospital maintains low, disciplined commercial pricing across both routine shoppable procedures (0.9× Medicare, p50 0.86× Fair BaseRate) and emergency/ancillary services (1.0× Medicare, p75 0.96× Fair BaseRate). Both insured and self-pay patients benefit from below-benchmark rates across departments.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 15% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.85×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 49% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (77/100 safety score) with 74% patient recommendation
- IRS 501(c)(3) charity care provides free care up to 200% FPL and discounted care up to 400% FPL (17.7% AGB cap)
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Outpatient surgery & OR suites carry a 1.1× markup over Medicare rates
- Captive ER (1.0×) & laboratory (1.0×) services average 1.11× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (0.9×)
- Even at low-cost facilities (0.49× Fair BaseRate), out-of-network or unnegotiated chargemaster bills can exceed commercial medians — confirm in-network status or request a self-pay cash quote up front.
- Consolidated metro market (HHI 2,917) limits in-network hospital competition (Highly Concentrated Monopoly (>2,500))
Pre-scheduled outpatient procedures where patients can comparison-shop.
Emergency, inpatient DRG, lab, and specialty drug lines billed after admission.
Detects median-gaming when upper-quartile codes spike above the p50 median.
In general, LA hospitals charge below the fair price — a good state to get this done. how we calculate the BaseRate →
Compared with the rest of the country, LA’s fair BaseRate ($107) is about the same as the national fair price of $124.
Cheapest LA hospitals for a psychological testing evaluation
- Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center · Lafayette $22
- Hardtner Medical Center · Olla $23
- University Medical Center New Orleans · New Orleans $37
- St James Parish Hospital · Lutcher $38
- Childrens Hospital · New Orleans $43
- West Jefferson Medical Center · Marrero $45
- Thibodaux Regional Medical Center · Thibodaux $46
- Rapides Regional Medical Center · Alexandria $50
- Christus Coushatta Health Care Center · Coushatta $54
- Franklin Medical Center · Winnsboro $58
- Ochsner Medical Center Acute · New Orleans $68
- Christus Ochsner Lake Area Hospital · Lake Charles $117
- Our Lady of the Lake Surgical Hospital · Slidell $118
- Ochsner Medical Center - Baton Rouge · Baton Rouge $119
- Christus Ochsner St Patrick Hospital · Lake Charles $119
Audit a Bill or Quote at LA Hospital Benchmark (Zero PHI Required)
Statutory 501(r) AGB Cap Limits Bill to $55
At 274% FPL (201%–400% FPL tier), 26 U.S.C. § 501(r)(5) caps FAP-eligible bills at Amounts Generally Billed (36.3% of gross = $55).
Compare Prompt-Pay Cash Rate Against Remaining Deductible
Ask LA Hospital Benchmark's billing desk for their written 45 CFR § 180 discounted self-pay cash price and Good Faith Estimate under the No Surprises Act.
Negotiate Toward $107 Fair BaseRate ($62 Medicare)
Your bill ($151) is $44 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($107) and 2.4× the $62 Medicare rate.