Prices at 3 hospitals in Fresno, CA, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $2,346 — 87% above the US median ($1,252), roughly 7.5× the Medicare rate.
Lowest cash prices
| Hospital | Location | Cash | Insurer | CMS rating | ER wait | Readmit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno Surgical Hospital | Fresno, CA | $1,095 | $1,077 | — | — | — |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital-Fresno | Fresno, CA | $2,346 | $785 | ★ 4/5 | — | — |
| Saint Agnes Medical Center | Fresno, CA | $3,228 | $1,673 | ★ 2/5 | 240 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 $2,346 — about 7.5× the Medicare rate ($311). High vs Medicare. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($622).
💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $4,057 list price could save about $1,711 (42%).
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 Fresno
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Julie Post, NP | Nurse Practitioner | Fresno, CA | 262 |
| Paul Speece, M.D. | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 221 |
| Chandrasekar Venugopal, MD | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 133 |
| Chanh Nguyen, M.D. | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 116 |
| Jeffrey Saavedra, M.D. | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 111 |
| Benjamin Pruett, D.O. | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 59 |
| Lynda Francis, NP | Nurse Practitioner | Fresno, CA | 55 |
| Ashkan Heshmatzadeh Behzadi, MD | Diagnostic Radiology | Fresno, CA | 48 |
| Sean Tower | Interventional Radiology | Fresno, CA | 38 |
All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices in California → · All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices (national) · All hospitals in Fresno