Varicella (chickenpox) vaccine cost in LA
What a varicella (chickenpox) vaccine costs at LA hospitals — and the fair price to aim for.
Typical commercial prices here match the fair market benchmark (1.01×) 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
Leonard J Chabert Medical Center maintains disciplined commercial pricing across both elective shoppable care (1.0× Medicare) and captive emergency/ancillary departments (1.1× Medicare). Patients and health plans benefit from predictable, below-benchmark rates (0.91× Fair BaseRate) without hidden ancillary cross-subsidization.
Where They're Good (Patient & Payer Edge)
- Elective shoppable care is priced 9% below peer Fair BaseRate (0.91×)
- Self-pay cash beats commercial insurance on 57% of shoppable procedures (99/100 Cash Honesty)
- CMS clinical safety score (77/100 safety score) with 75% patient recommendation
- IRS 501(c)(3) charity care provides free care up to 200% FPL and discounted care up to 400% FPL (40.5% AGB cap)
Where You Can Get Burned (Markup Traps)
- Even at low-cost facilities (1.01× 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.
- Captive ER (0.7×) & laboratory (0.8×) services average 1.10× higher multiples than routine shoppable care (1.0×)
- Even at low-cost facilities (1.01× 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 3,324) 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 about the fair price for this. how we calculate the BaseRate →
Compared with the rest of the country, LA’s fair BaseRate ($193) is about the same as the national fair price of $206.
Cheapest LA hospitals for a varicella (chickenpox) vaccine
- Leonard J Chabert Medical Center · Houma $150
- University Medical Center New Orleans · New Orleans $150
- Christus Shreveport-Bossier Health System · Shreveport $172
- Christus St Frances Cabrini Hospital · Alexandria $172
- Christus Ochsner St Patrick Hospital · Lake Charles $172
- Christus Coushatta Health Care Center · Coushatta $172
- Christus Ochsner Lake Area Hospital · Lake Charles $172
- Our Lady of the Lake Surgical Hospital · Slidell $176
- Touro Infirmary · New Orleans $182
- East Jefferson General Hospital · Metairie $182
- Childrens Hospital · New Orleans $182
- New Orleans East Hospital · New Orleans $182
- West Jefferson Medical Center · Marrero $182
- Natchitoches Regional Medical Center · Natchitoches $184
- Ochsner University Hospital and Clinics · Lafayette $196
Audit a Bill or Quote at LA Hospital Benchmark (Zero PHI Required)
Statutory 501(r) AGB Cap Limits Bill to $179
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 = $179).
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 $193 Fair BaseRate ($112 Medicare)
Your bill ($494) is $301 above the denoised Fair BaseRate ($193) and 4.4× the $112 Medicare rate.