Speech therapy (language evaluation) cost in LA
What a speech therapy (language evaluation) costs at LA hospitals — and the fair price to aim for.
Typical commercial prices here are 16% below the fair benchmark (0.84×) after accounting for local nurse/doctor wages and patient complexity.
Balances commercial hospital prices against CMS clinical safety, infection control, and patient experience.
Aligned Regional Benchmark Peer
Touro Infirmary prices shoppable and inpatient services (1.3× to 1.0× Medicare, divergence 0.77×) in alignment with regional hospital peers (0.96× Fair BaseRate). Reviewing plan-specific negotiated rates and cash discounts helps lock in the lowest out-of-pocket tier.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 4% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.96×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 29% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (74/100 safety score) with 73% patient recommendation
- IRS 501(c)(3) charity care provides free care up to 200% FPL and discounted care up to 400% FPL (17.3% AGB cap)
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Even at low-cost facilities (0.84× 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.
- Commercial insurance median sits at 0.97× Fair BaseRate (1.3× Medicare), so insured patients should always compare the self-pay cash price before paying.
- Upper-quartile procedures (Q75 1.17×) jump +21% above the median procedure ratio (Q50 0.97×)
- Unnegotiated chargemaster list prices average 14.6× Medicare (14¢ true HCRIS cost per $1 gross)
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 about the fair price for this. how we calculate the BaseRate →
Compared with the rest of the country, LA’s fair BaseRate ($75) is below the national fair price of $91.
Cheapest LA hospitals for a speech therapy (language evaluation)
- Touro Infirmary · New Orleans $33
- East Jefferson General Hospital · Metairie $33
- Childrens Hospital · New Orleans $33
- West Jefferson Medical Center · Marrero $33
- Dequincy Memorial Hospital · Dequincy $33
- Bienville Medical Center · Arcadia $33
- West Carroll Memorial Hospital · Oak Grove $33
- Mercy Regional Medical Center · Ville Platte $36
- Allen Parish Hospital · Kinder $41
- Lallie Kemp Medical Center · Independence $46
- Jackson Parish Hospital · Jonesboro $50
- Madison Parish Hospital · Tallulah $50
- Minden Medical Center · Minden $50
- Christus Shreveport-Bossier Health System · Shreveport $52
- Christus St Frances Cabrini Hospital · Alexandria $52
Audit a Bill or Quote at LA Hospital Benchmark (Zero PHI Required)
Statutory 501(r) AGB Cap Limits Bill to $63
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 = $63).
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 $75 Fair BaseRate ($44 Medicare)
Your bill ($173) is $98 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($75) and 3.9× the $44 Medicare rate.