Spinal tap (lumbar puncture) cost in North Carolina

Prices at 70 hospitals in North Carolina, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $724 — 13% below the US median ($830), roughly 4.4× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Lifebrite Community Hospital of Stokes Danbury, NC $119 $176 — — —
Catawba Valley Medical Center Hickory, NC $202 $196 ★ 2/5 228 min —
Duke University Hospital Durham, NC $301 $280 ★ 5/5 317 min —
Duke Health Lake Norman Hospital Mooresville, NC $301 $199 ★ 1/5 190 min —
Duke Regional Hospital Durham, NC $301 $280 ★ 5/5 255 min —
Granville Health Systems Oxford, NC $338 — ★ 2/5 191 min —
Vidant Edgecombe Hospital Tarboro, NC $355 $406 ★ 3/5 239 min —
North Carolina Baptist Hospital Winston-salem, NC $361 $239 ★ 4/5 183 min —
Chatham Hospital Inc Siler City, NC $362 $187 ★ 4/5 222 min —
Alamance Regional Medical Center Burlington, NC $398 $237 ★ 3/5 228 min —
Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital, The Greensboro, NC $398 $237 ★ 3/5 224 min —
Southeastern Regional Medical Center Lumberton, NC $406 $677 ★ 2/5 248 min —
Columbus Regional Healthcare System Whiteville, NC $454 $477 ★ 1/5 177 min —
Vidant Duplin Hospital Kenansville, NC $493 $606 ★ 3/5 170 min —
Rutherford Regional Medical Center Rutherfordton, NC $506 $1,309 ★ 2/5 144 min —
Dlp Swain County Hospital Llc Bryson City, NC $510 — — 81 min —
Maria Parham Medical Center Henderson, NC $539 — ★ 2/5 168 min —
Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital Elkin, NC $540 $320 ★ 3/5 168 min —
ECU Health Medical Center Greenville, NC $548 $620 ★ 2/5 289 min —
Vidant Chowan Hospital Edenton, NC $548 $620 ★ 3/5 164 min —
UNC Rockingham Eden, NC $608 $648 ★ 4/5 187 min —
Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center Winston-salem, NC $656 $685 ★ 4/5 206 min —
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus Raleigh, NC $685 $811 ★ 4/5 204 min —
Wakemed, Cary Hospital Cary, NC $685 $807 ★ 5/5 196 min —
Washington County Hosp Inc Plymouth, NC $698 — — — —

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)
$1,405
Cash / self-pay
$724
Insurer-negotiated
$713
Medicare pays
$165
$348$983
Median cash $724  ·  Medicare $165  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $724 — about 4.4× the Medicare rate ($165). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($330).

💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $1,405 list price could save about $681 (48%).

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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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