CMS Price Transparency Data

MRI, knee or other leg joint

Facility: Lowell General Hospital

Billing Code: 73721 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$407

about 1.7× the $244 Medicare rate · typically $274–$904

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$274

Below the fair price — a good deal

about $133 under the fair price · 1.1× Medicare

Medicare pays $244 Fair price $407 This hospital $274 Cash price $1,371 Hospital's list price $1,958

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other MA hospitals

On the higher side — 7 of 8 other MA hospitals charge less.

Cheapest $231 Priciest $284

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

⚠ The cash price looks unusually high next to the insurance price — it may be the full list price, not a real cash discount. Call to confirm the self-pay rate.

A fair price for a MRI, knee or other leg joint is about $407 (about 1.7× the $244 Medicare rate). Lowell General Hospital charges insurers about $274, or about $1,371 in cash — below the fair price — a good deal. Located in Lowell, MA.

What each insurance company pays

Which insurers have negotiated a price with this hospital for this procedure — and which haven’t.

4 of 6 major insurers have a published price at this hospital

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna✓ Cigna HumanaKaiser 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	$137 - $2,456	56%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$210 - $914	86%
Aetnamajor	$165 - $2,063	68%
Cignamajor	$483 - $1,306	198%
AmeriHealth	$457 - $914	187%
AvMed	$457 - $914	187%
GEHA	$457 - $914	187%
Harvard Pilgrim	$137 - $274	56%
Tufts Health Plan	$202 - $965	83%
WellSense	$457 - $914	187%
+ 102 smaller / regional plans	$137 - $2,174

Government programs also on file: Medicare, Medicaid.

Excludes 12 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 1,371), 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: 73721.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Lowell General Hospital is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 73721.
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 Lowell General Hospital

Compare: MRI, knee or other leg joint at other MA hospitals

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