Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) cost in West Virginia

Prices at 27 hospitals in West Virginia, from their machine-readable files. Here the median cash price is $1,213 — about the US median ($1,239), roughly 3.9× the Medicare rate.

Lowest cash prices

HospitalLocationCashInsurerCMS ratingER waitReadmit
Preston Memorial Hospital Kingwood, WV $185 $269 — 112 min —
Summersville Regional Medical Center Summersville, WV $376 — ★ 2/5 136 min —
Raleigh General Hospital Beckley, WV $457 — ★ 2/5 194 min —
Jefferson Medical Center Ranson, WV $513 — ★ 1/5 173 min —
Princeton Community Hospital Assn Inc Princeton, WV $548 $667 ★ 2/5 172 min —
Wetzel County Hospital New Martinsville, WV $583 $664 ★ 3/5 133 min —
Montgomery General Hospital Montgomery, WV $585 $865 — 100 min —
Jackson General Hospital Ripley, WV $632 — ★ 3/5 127 min —
Potomac Valley Hospital Keyser, WV $781 — ★ 1/5 119 min —
St Joseph's Hospital of Buckhannon, Inc Buckhannon, WV $822 — ★ 3/5 141 min —
Vandalia Health Broaddus Hospital Philippi, WV $1,044 $284 — 102 min —
Grant Memorial Hospital Petersburg, WV $1,175 — ★ 3/5 110 min —
Beckley ARH Hospital Beckley, WV $1,250 $784 ★ 3/5 219 min —
Camden Clark Medical Center Parkersburg, WV $1,346 $629 ★ 2/5 226 min —
United Hospital Center, Inc Bridgeport, WV $1,395 $673 ★ 4/5 212 min —
Camc Greenbrier Valley Medical Center, Inc Ronceverte, WV $1,446 $641 ★ 2/5 186 min —
Charleston Area Medical Center Charleston, WV $1,446 $641 ★ 2/5 182 min —
Cabell Huntington Hospital, Inc Huntington, WV $1,638 $566 ★ 3/5 223 min —
Wheeling Hospital, Inc Wheeling, WV $1,684 $628 ★ 2/5 203 min —
Berkeley Medical Center Martinsburg, WV $1,787 $634 ★ 3/5 167 min —
Mon Health Medical Center Morgantown, WV $2,340 $2,918 ★ 4/5 185 min —
Mon Health Marion Whitehall, WV $2,340 $2,918 — 86 min —
St Marys Medical Center Huntington, WV $3,824 $595 ★ 3/5 209 min —
West Virginia University Hospitals, Inc Morgantown, WV $4,368 $622 ★ 3/5 190 min —
Reynolds Memorial Hospital, Inc Glen Dale, WV $4,658 $623 ★ 2/5 162 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)
$1,527
Cash / self-pay
$1,213
Insurer-negotiated
$631
Medicare pays
$311
$417$3,082
Median cash $1,213  ·  Medicare $311  ·  bar = typical cash range (10th–90th percentile)
Is this a fair price?
1× Medicarefair ≈2×5×+

Typical cash price here is $1,213 — about 3.9× 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 $1,527 list price could save about $314 (21%).

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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.

Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) cost in other states

All Chest fluid drain (thoracentesis) prices (national) → · All hospitals in West Virginia →