CMS Price Transparency Data

CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine)

Facility: Baptist Beaumont Hospital

Billing Code: 72131 (CPT)

The BaseRate · fair price high confidence

A fair price for this

$188

about 1.8× the $107 Medicare rate · typically $126–$239

modeled estimate · not a bill or quote

What this hospital charges insurers

$187

About the fair price

about $1 under the fair price · 1.7× Medicare

Medicare pays $107 Fair price $188 This hospital $187 Cash price $532 Hospital's list price $4,096

How we calculate the fair BaseRate →

How this hospital compares to other TX hospitals

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

Cheapest $46 Priciest $187

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

A fair price for a CT scan, lower back (lumbar spine) is about $188 (about 1.8× the $107 Medicare rate). Baptist Beaumont Hospital charges insurers about $187, or about $532 in cash — about the fair price. Located in Beaumont, TX.

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	$487 - $731	456%
Blue Cross Blue Shieldmajor	$105 - $221	98%
Aetnamajor	$105 - $788	98%
Cignamajor	$105 - $1,778	98%
Humanamajor	$793 - $2,048	742%
Amerigroup	$410	384%
+ 15 smaller / regional plans	$105 - $3,277

Government programs also on file: Medicaid.

Excludes 8 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 532), 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 Baptist Beaumont Hospital 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 Baptist Beaumont Hospital

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

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