Prices at 3 hospitals in Boston, MA, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $608 — 51% below the US median ($1,252), roughly 2.0× the Medicare rate.
Lowest cash prices
| Hospital | Location | Cash | Insurer | CMS rating | ER wait | Readmit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts General Hospital | Boston, MA | $608 | $734 | ★ 5/5 | 288 min | — |
| Brigham and Women's Hospital | Boston, MA | $608 | $632 | ★ 5/5 | 300 min | — |
| Tufts Medical Center | Boston, MA | $1,646 | $1,234 | ★ 2/5 | 208 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 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 $608 — about 2.0× the Medicare rate ($311). Reasonable. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($622).
💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $810 list price could save about $203 (25%).
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 Boston
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alice Lee, M.D. | Interventional Radiology | Boston, MA | 75 |
| Carlos Giron, PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT | Physician Assistant | Boston, MA | 64 |
| Peter Schaefer, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Boston, MA | 36 |
| Majid Shafiq, M.D. | Pulmonary Disease | Boston, MA | 36 |
| James Bass, MD | Interventional Radiology | Boston, MA | 29 |
| Colleen Keyes, M.D., M.P.H. | Pulmonary Disease | Boston, MA | 29 |
| Kai Swenson, MD | Internal Medicine | Boston, MA | 29 |
| Julie Mucciarone, PA-C | Physician Assistant | Boston, MA | 27 |
| Fayez Kheir, M.D. | Pulmonary Disease | Boston, MA | 25 |
| David Lee, M.D. | Internal Medicine | Boston, MA | 24 |
| Erik Folch, MD, MSC | Pulmonary Disease | Boston, MA | 24 |
| John Santilli, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Boston, MA | 21 |
All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices in Massachusetts → · All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices (national) · All hospitals in Boston