CMS Price Transparency Data

Blood transfusion

Facility: Boston Medical Center

Billing Code: 36430 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$560

about 1.2× the $451 Medicare rate · typically $271–$1,439

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$589

About the fair price

about $29 over the fair price · 1.3× Medicare

Medicare pays $451 Fair price $560 This hospital $589 Cash price $673 Hospital's list price $1,496

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other MA hospitals

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

Cheapest $80 Priciest $589

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

A fair price for a Blood transfusion is about $560 (about 1.2× the $451 Medicare rate). Boston Medical Center charges insurers about $589, or about $673 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Boston, MA.

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	$512 - $1,259	114%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$438 - $1,122	97%
Aetnamajor	$512 - $732	114%
Cignamajor	$1,185 - $1,272	263%
Humanamajor	$512	114%
Harvard Pilgrim	$941	209%
Tufts Health Plan	$431 - $1,185	96%
UniCare	$1,122	249%
WellCare	$533	118%
+ 20 smaller / regional plans	$512 - $1,259

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

Excludes 3 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 673), 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: 36430.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Boston Medical Center is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 36430.
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 Boston Medical Center

Compare: Blood transfusion at other MA hospitals

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