Prices at 13 hospitals in Philadelphia, PA, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $2,218 — 77% above the US median ($1,252), roughly 7.1× the Medicare rate.
Lowest cash prices
| Hospital | Location | Cash | Insurer | CMS rating | ER wait | Readmit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roxborough Memorial Hospital | Philadelphia, PA | $641 | $705 | ★ 2/5 | 182 min | 15.5% |
| Jefferson Health-Northeast | Philadelphia, PA | $708 | $132 | ★ 2/5 | 290 min | 15.4% |
| Jefferson Einstein Philadelphia Hospital | Philadelphia, PA | $718 | $693 | ★ 3/5 | 269 min | 15.4% |
| Thomas Jefferson University Hospital | Philadelphia, PA | $741 | $247 | ★ 3/5 | 253 min | 16.2% |
| St Christopher's Hospital for Children | Philadelphia, PA | $852 | $511 | — | — | — |
| Nazareth Hospital | Philadelphia, PA | $2,218 | $2,230 | ★ 2/5 | 216 min | 14.5% |
| Hospital of Univ of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $2,697 | $1,349 | ★ 5/5 | 280 min | 14.4% |
| Penn Presbyterian Medical Center | Philadelphia, PA | $2,995 | $689 | ★ 4/5 | 316 min | 15.2% |
| Philadelphia VA Medical Center | Philadelphia, PA | $4,319 | $2,477 | ★ 5/5 | — | 14.5% |
| Children's Hospital of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $4,319 | $2,477 | — | — | — |
| Pennsylvania Hospital | Philadelphia, PA | $7,216 | $993 | ★ 4/5 | 272 min | 15.8% |
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 August 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)
Typical cash price here is $2,218 — about 7.1× the Medicare rate ($311). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($622).
💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $3,454 list price could save about $1,235 (36%).
Rough estimate from this procedure’s median insurer-negotiated rate. Your actual cost depends on your plan — confirm with your insurer.
Doctors who perform this in Philadelphia
Clinicians who reported the most Medicare volume for this service locally. This reflects Original Medicare activity only and is a volume signal, not a quality ranking.
| Clinician | Specialty | Location | Medicare services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tammy Tursi, CRNP | Nurse Practitioner | Philadelphia, PA | 261 |
| Molly Jozefowski, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Philadelphia, PA | 101 |
| Mark Burshteyn, M.D | Interventional Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 89 |
| Emil Abramian, M. D. | Pulmonary Disease | Philadelphia, PA | 87 |
| Bhavik Patel, M.D. | Diagnostic Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 67 |
| Joshua Cho, M.D. | Diagnostic Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 66 |
| Alison Kourlesis, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Philadelphia, PA | 56 |
| Derek Lee, M.D. | Diagnostic Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 44 |
| Phillip Kim | Diagnostic Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 40 |
| Jared Meshekow, M.D., M.P.H. | Interventional Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 38 |
| Niveditha Thangaraj | Diagnostic Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 34 |
| Shane Lee, MD | Interventional Radiology | Philadelphia, PA | 32 |
All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices in Pennsylvania → · All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices (national) · All hospitals in Philadelphia