CMS Price Transparency Data

CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine)

Facility: Guthrie Cortland Regional Medical Center

Billing Code: 72131 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$158

about 1.5× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $138–$306

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$161

About the fair price

about $3 over the fair price · 1.5× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $158 This hospital $161 Cash price $1,928 Hospital's list price $2,410

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other NY hospitals

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

Cheapest $48 Priciest $161

Black dot = this hospital, among the 9 NY 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 CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) is about $158 (about 1.5× the $107 Medicare rate). Guthrie Cortland Regional Medical Center charges insurers about $161, or about $1,928 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Cortland, NY.

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✓ Humana CignaKaiser 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	$135 - $1,687	126%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$142 - $2,410	133%
Aetnamajor	$139	130%
Humanamajor	$139	130%
AmeriHealth	$139 - $180	130%
Fidelis Care	$141 - $318	132%
Geisinger	$182	170%
HealthPartners	$180	169%
MVP Health Care	$137 - $2,410	128%
WellCare	$135 - $141	126%
+ 2 smaller / regional plans	$142 - $1,928

Government programs also on file: Military & VA.

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 1,928), 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 Guthrie Cortland Regional Medical Center 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 (%)

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Other Procedures at Guthrie Cortland Regional Medical Center

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

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