Joint aspiration (small/intermediate) cost in Houston, TX

Prices at 10 hospitals in Houston, TX, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $1,015 — 159% above the US median ($392), roughly 17.9× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Tops Surgical Specialty Hospital Houston, TX $474 $981 — — —
St Joseph Medical Center Houston, TX $882 $313 ★ 3/5 180 min —
Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center Houston, TX $1,015 — ★ 4/5 252 min —
Memorial Hermann Hospital System Houston, TX $1,015 — ★ 3/5 243 min —
St Luke's Hospital at the Vintage Houston, TX $1,379 $972 ★ 4/5 209 min —

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 October 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)
$3,171
Cash / self-pay
$1,015
Insurer-negotiated
$1,827
Medicare pays
$57
$637$1,233
Median cash $1,015  ·  Medicare $57  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $1,015 — about 17.9× the Medicare rate ($57). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($113).

💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $3,171 list price could save about $2,156 (68%).

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 Joint aspiration (small/intermediate) prices in Texas → · All Joint aspiration (small/intermediate) prices (national) · All hospitals in Houston