Prices at 6 hospitals in Saint Louis, MO, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $2,117 — 4% below the US median ($2,210), roughly 7.9× the Medicare rate.
Lowest cash prices
| Hospital | Location | Cash | Insurer | CMS rating | ER wait | Readmit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri Baptist Medical Center | Saint Louis, MO | $1,470 | $1,087 | ★ 5/5 | 262 min | — |
| Christian Hospital Northeast | Saint Louis, MO | $1,470 | $1,541 | ★ 4/5 | 217 min | — |
| Mercy Hospital South | Saint Louis, MO | $1,738 | $401 | ★ 2/5 | 254 min | — |
| Mercy Hospital St Louis | Saint Louis, MO | $2,496 | $401 | ★ 4/5 | 220 min | — |
| St Louis Childrens Hospital | Saint Louis, MO | $3,650 | $4,305 | — | — | — |
| Shriners Hospitals for Children | Saint Louis, MO | $8,666 | $381 | — | — | — |
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)
Typical cash price here is $2,117 — about 7.9× the Medicare rate ($270). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($539).
💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $3,257 list price could save about $1,140 (35%).
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 Saint Louis
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Francis Wu, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 53 |
| Parisa Mazaheri, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 52 |
| David Loy, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 48 |
| Shamseldeen Mahmoud, M.D | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 48 |
| Matthew Parsons, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 42 |
| Thomas Kim, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 42 |
| Ayman Nada, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 34 |
| Michelle Miller-Thomas, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 33 |
| Gloria Guzman Perez-Carrillo, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 32 |
| Matthew Glasser, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 31 |
| William Holloway, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 28 |
| Ali Mian, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Saint Louis, MO | 26 |
All MRI of the lower back (lumbar spine) prices in Missouri → · All MRI of the lower back (lumbar spine) prices (national) · All hospitals in Saint Louis