Prices at 7 hospitals in Houston, TX, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $1,945 — 52% above the US median ($1,278), roughly 6.8× the Medicare rate.
Lowest cash prices
| Hospital | Location | Cash | Insurer | CMS rating | ER wait | Readmit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Luke's Hospital at the Vintage | Houston, TX | $1,567 | $1,362 | ★ 4/5 | 209 min | — |
| Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center | Houston, TX | $1,945 | — | ★ 4/5 | 252 min | — |
| Memorial Hermann Hospital System | Houston, TX | $1,945 | — | ★ 3/5 | 243 min | — |
| St Joseph Medical Center | Houston, TX | $2,289 | $866 | ★ 3/5 | 180 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)
Typical cash price here is $1,945 — about 6.8× the Medicare rate ($284). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($568).
💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $5,278 list price could save about $3,333 (63%).
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 Houston
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kyung Lee, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 216 |
| Phillip Parmet, M.D. | Diagnostic Radiology | Houston, TX | 211 |
| David Marker, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Houston, TX | 187 |
| Nhu Binh Nguyen, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 170 |
| Samantha Zapalac, RN | Nurse Practitioner | Houston, TX | 153 |
| Jose Cesar-Dorantes, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 104 |
| Ashley Ly, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 101 |
| Wei-Tsuen Fang, M.D. | Diagnostic Radiology | Houston, TX | 97 |
| Samad Ali, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 87 |
| Richard Tapnio, MD | Interventional Radiology | Houston, TX | 82 |
| Daniel Fung, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Houston, TX | 78 |
| Esmeralda Carrillo, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Houston, TX | 77 |
Abdominal fluid drain (paracentesis) in other Texas cities
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