MRI of the lower back (lumbar spine) without contrast cost in Louisville, KY

Prices at 3 hospitals in Louisville, KY, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $1,228 — 37% below the US median ($1,948), roughly 6.4× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Uofl Health-Jewish Hospital and Mary & Elizabeth Hospital Louisville, KY $1,228 $2,559 ★ 2/5 145 min 15.6%
University of Louisville Hospital Louisville, KY $1,228 $2,559 ★ 1/5 198 min 16.4%

CMS rating = overall hospital star rating (1–5); ER wait = median minutes in the emergency department; Readmit = 30-day readmission rate (lower is better) — all from Medicare’s Care Compare; “—” = not reported. Data last updated June 2026. Prices from hospitals’ machine-readable files (45 CFR §180); Medicare benchmark from CMS PFS/CLFS/IPPS. Prices below 15% of the median are excluded as likely partial or mis-coded charges. Estimates — confirm with the hospital. Report an incorrect price.

Price comparison (median)

Chargemaster (list price)
$5,118
Cash / self-pay
$1,228
Insurer-negotiated
$2,559
Medicare pays
$192
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $1,228 — about 6.4× the Medicare rate ($192). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($383).

💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $5,118 list price could save about $3,890 (76%).

Estimate what you’ll pay
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Rough estimate from this procedure’s median insurer-negotiated rate. Your actual cost depends on your plan — confirm with your insurer.

All MRI of the lower back (lumbar spine) without contrast prices in Kentucky → · All MRI of the lower back (lumbar spine) without contrast prices (national) · All hospitals in Louisville