Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) cost in Tennessee

Prices at 54 hospitals in Tennessee, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $458 — 63% below the US median ($1,239), roughly 1.5× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Big South Fork Medical Center Oneida, TN $339 $1,131 — 170 min —
Haywood County Community Hospital Brownsville, TN $352 — — 126 min —
Hancock County Hospital Sneedville, TN $377 $1,166 — 104 min —
Wellmont Bristol Regional Medical Center Bristol, TN $384 $708 ★ 2/5 196 min —
Wellmont Holston Valley Medical Center Kingsport, TN $384 $742 ★ 2/5 204 min —
Sycamore Shoals Hospital Elizabethton, TN $384 $896 ★ 2/5 142 min —
Hawkins County Memorial Hospital Rogersville, TN $384 $682 — 113 min —
Greeneville Community Hospital Greeneville, TN $384 $670 ★ 2/5 154 min —
Johnson City Medical Center Johnson City, TN $384 $893 ★ 1/5 211 min —
Indian Path Community Hospital Kingsport, TN $384 $1,054 — 136 min —
Franklin Woods Community Hospital Johnson City, TN $384 $762 ★ 3/5 178 min —
Johnson County Community Hospital Mountain City, TN $384 $893 — 131 min —
Baptist Memorial Hospital-Carroll County Huntingdon, TN $417 $855 ★ 4/5 119 min —
Baptist Memorial Hospital Memphis, TN $417 $855 ★ 3/5 182 min —
Baptist Memorial Hospital Tipton Covington, TN $417 $855 ★ 3/5 149 min —
Baptist Memorial Hospital Union City Union City, TN $436 $1,016 ★ 4/5 139 min —
Parkwest Medical Center Knoxville, TN $443 $1,202 ★ 3/5 259 min —
Cumberland Medical Center Crossville, TN $458 $650 ★ 4/5 204 min —
Morristown Hamblen Hospital Association Morristown, TN $458 $652 ★ 2/5 198 min —
Roane Medical Center Harriman, TN $458 $726 ★ 4/5 174 min —
Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge Oak Ridge, TN $458 $765 ★ 4/5 186 min —
Leconte Medical Center Sevierville, TN $458 $650 ★ 5/5 200 min —
Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center Knoxville, TN $458 $628 ★ 3/5 234 min —
Fort Loudoun Medical Center Lenoir City, TN $472 $628 ★ 4/5 170 min —
Methodist Hospitals of Memphis Memphis, TN $496 $566 ★ 3/5 228 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)

Chargemaster (list price)
$2,196
Cash / self-pay
$458
Insurer-negotiated
$893
Medicare pays
$311
$384$892
Median cash $458  ·  Medicare $311  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $458 — about 1.5× the Medicare rate ($311). Reasonable. A fair cash price is usually within ~2× Medicare ($622).

💡 Asking for the cash price instead of the $2,196 list price could save about $1,738 (79%).

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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.

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