CMS Price Transparency Data

CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine)

Facility: Sanford Hillsboro

Billing Code: 72131 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price medium confidence

A fair price for this

$617

about 5.8× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $145–$1,044

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$529

Below the fair price — a good deal

about $88 under the fair price · 4.9× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $617 This hospital $529 Cash price $1,469 Hospital's list price $1,836

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other ND hospitals

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

Cheapest $99 Priciest $529

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

A fair price for a CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) is about $617 (about 5.8× the $107 Medicare rate). Sanford Hillsboro charges insurers about $529, or about $1,469 in cash — below the fair price — a good deal. Located in Hillsboro, ND.

What each insurance company pays

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

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

✓ UnitedHealthcare✓ Blue Cross Blue Shield✓ Aetna CignaHumanaKaiser 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	$907 - $1,533	849%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$353 - $1,192	330%
Aetnamajor	$907 - $1,595	849%
Health Net	$1,652	1547%
HealthPartners	$907 - $1,432	849%
Medica	$1,515 - $1,619	1418%
Sanford Health Plan	$837 - $1,705	784%
Security Health Plan	$1,010	946%
UCare	$900 - $1,613	843%
+ 2 smaller / regional plans	$925 - $1,652

Government programs also on file: Medicare.

Excludes 1 rental-network / third-party entry (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 1,469), 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: 72131.

Insurance Before you use insurance

Call your insurance company to confirm Sanford Hillsboro is in-network.
Ask your insurer whether prior approval is required for CPT code 72131.
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 Sanford Hillsboro

Compare: CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) at other ND hospitals

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