Abdominal fluid drain (paracentesis) cost in New Jersey

Prices at 25 hospitals in New Jersey, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $1,251 — 3% below the US median ($1,290), roughly 4.4× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital Camden, NJ $653 ★ 2/5 161 min 15.4%
Virtua Willingboro Hospital Willingboro, NJ $653 ★ 3/5 181 min 14.8%
St Luke's Warren Hospital Phillipsburg, NJ $994 $960 ★ 5/5 140 min 15.0%
Newton Medical Center Newton, NJ $1,024 $1,024 ★ 4/5 169 min 14.7%
Saint Clare's Hospital/ Denville Campus Denville, NJ $1,051 $1,625 ★ 2/5 164 min 16.2%
Saint Michael's Medical Center Newark, NJ $1,051 $1,473 ★ 4/5 176 min 16.0%
St Mary's General Hospital Passaic, NJ $1,072 $1,538 ★ 3/5 183 min 16.2%
Hunterdon Medical Center Flemington, NJ $1,142 $2,983 ★ 4/5 232 min 16.3%
Jefferson Stratford Hospital Stratford, NJ $1,173 $4,400 ★ 2/5 235 min 17.5%
Centrastate Medical Center Freehold, NJ $1,193 $1,387 ★ 4/5 219 min 15.8%
Hackensack Meridian Mountainside Medical Montclair, NJ $1,210 $1,256 ★ 4/5 234 min 15.1%
The University Hospital Newark, NJ $1,230 $1,524 ★ 1/5 294 min 15.6%
Morristown Medical Center Morristown, NJ $1,251 $1,088 ★ 5/5 240 min 13.6%
Chilton Medical Center Pompton Plains, NJ $1,251 $1,088 ★ 5/5 226 min 13.5%
Overlook Medical Center Summit, NJ $1,251 $1,088 ★ 5/5 192 min 13.9%
Valley Hospital Paramus, NJ $1,290 $1,993 ★ 4/5 223 min 14.9%
Carewell Health Medical Center East Orange, NJ $2,575 $1,052 ★ 1/5 180 min 16.1%
St Joseph's University Medical Center Inc Paterson, NJ $2,830 $1,509 ★ 3/5 224 min 15.4%
Inspira Medical Center Vineland Vineland, NJ $3,166 $1,071 ★ 3/5 204 min 15.4%
Inspira Medical Center Mullica Hill Elmer, NJ $3,166 $1,071 ★ 3/5 182 min 16.2%
Deborah Heart and Lung Center Browns Mills, NJ $3,344 $1,325 ★ 3/5 15.6%
Cooper University Hospital Camden, NJ $4,741 $2,518 ★ 2/5 216 min 16.0%
Capital Health Medical Center-Hopewell Pennington, NJ $5,841 $1,020 ★ 2/5 206 min 16.7%
Capital Health Regional Medical Center Trenton, NJ $5,841 $1,020 ★ 2/5 166 min 15.6%
Saint Peter's University Hospital New Brunswick, NJ $6,294 $2,784 ★ 3/5 207 min 16.2%

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 August 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)
$3,721
Cash / self-pay
$1,251
Insurer-negotiated
$1,325
Medicare pays
$284
$1,006$5,401
Median cash $1,251  ·  Medicare $284  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $1,251 — about 4.4× 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 $3,721 list price could save about $2,470 (66%).

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.

Abdominal fluid drain (paracentesis) cost in other states

All Abdominal fluid drain (paracentesis) prices (national) → · All hospitals in New Jersey →