Chest tube insertion cost in New Orleans, LA

Prices at 5 hospitals in New Orleans, LA, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $691 — 49% below the US median ($1,362), roughly 4.8× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
University Medical Center New Orleans New Orleans, LA $491 $10,000 ★ 2/5 327 min
Ochsner Medical Center Acute New Orleans, LA $605 $1,649 ★ 4/5 174 min
St Charles Surgical Hospital New Orleans, LA $691
New Orleans East Hospital New Orleans, LA $740 $1,050 140 min
Childrens Hospital New Orleans, LA $1,489 $499

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 September 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)
$2,752
Cash / self-pay
$691
Insurer-negotiated
$1,349
Medicare pays
$143
$537$1,190
Median cash $691  ·  Medicare $143  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $691 — about 4.8× the Medicare rate ($143). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($286).

💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $2,752 list price could save about $2,062 (75%).

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.

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