Price Comparison Report

MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast

Durham, NC · 6 facilities · CPT 72148 · September 06, 2026

Summary

6 facilities within 25 miles of Durham publish prices for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast. Cash prices range from $876 to $2,114 — a 2.4x difference for an identical procedure. The North Carolina average is $2,537.

$876 lowest
$2,114 highest
Best Value

Duke University Hospital

Durham, VA · Duke Health · 0.0 mi

$876 Cash price
5/5 CMS rating
80.0% Patient satisfaction

Lowest price among hospitals rated 5 stars or above. Patient satisfaction: 80%. Cash price of $876 is below the statewide average of $2,537.

All facilities ranked by price

1
Duke University Hospital 5★ · 0.0 mi · For-profit
$876
2
Duke Regional Hospital 4★ · 0.0 mi · Local government
$876
3
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus 4★ · 20.8 mi · Nonprofit
$1,514
4
Rex Hospital 5★ · 20.8 mi · State government
$2,114
5
Unc Hospitals 5★ · 10.4 mi · State government
$2,114
Complete facility data
# Facility Cash Price Gross Charge Markup CMS Stars Patient Rating Ownership
1 Duke University Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 0.0 mi $876 $3,245 3.7x 5/5 80.0% For-profit
2 Duke Regional Hospital Duke Health Durham, NC · 0.0 mi $876 $3,245 3.7x 4/5 71.0% Local government
3 Wakemed, Raleigh Campus WakeMed Raleigh, NC · 20.8 mi $1,514 $3,983 2.63x 4/5 71.0% Nonprofit
4 Rex Hospital UNC Health Raleigh, NC · 20.8 mi $2,114 $3,523 1.67x 5/5 80.0% State government
5 Unc Hospitals UNC Health Chapel Hill, NC · 10.4 mi $2,114 $3,523 1.67x 5/5 78.0% State government
6 Duke Health Raleigh Hospital Duke Health Raleigh, NC · 19.2 mi — $2,820 — — —

Insurance negotiated rates by facility

The rates below are what each insurer has contractually agreed to pay this hospital for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your deductible status and copay structure.

Duke University Hospital

Cash: $876
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $225 -$652
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $233 -$644
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $233 -$644
Humana Medicare Advantage $235 -$642
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $235 -$641
VOANS Medicare Advantage $235 -$641
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $237 -$639
Cigna Medicare Advantage $240 -$636
Liberty Medicare Advantage $240 -$636
UnitedHealthcare Commercial/EPO/PPO $261 -$615
Aetna Whole Health $672 -$204
Cigna Connect $689 -$187
Cigna Commercial/HMO/PPO $689 -$187
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $734 -$142
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $734 -$142

10 additional plans not shown.

Duke Regional Hospital

Cash: $876
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO $227 -$649
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage/Medicare Advantage HMO/Medicare Advantage PPO $235 -$641
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage $235 -$641
Troy Health Medicare Advantage $235 -$641
VOANS Medicare Advantage $235 -$641
Aetna Medicare Advantage PPO $240 -$636
Cigna Medicare Advantage $240 -$636
Liberty Medicare Advantage $240 -$636
Humana Medicare Advantage $241 -$635
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $522 -$354
Blue Cross Blue Shield Managed Medicaid $522 -$354
Carolina Complete Health Managed Medicaid $522 -$354
Trillium Managed Medicaid $522 -$354
Alliance Health Managed Medicaid $580 -$296
Partners Managed Medicaid $580 -$296

10 additional plans not shown.

Wakemed, Raleigh Campus

Cash: $1,514
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna Medicare Advantage $234 -$1,280
Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare Advantage $234 -$1,280
Wellcare Medicare Advantage $234 -$1,280
Liberty Medicare Advantage $238 -$1,275
Pruitt Medicare Advantage $238 -$1,275
Alignment Medicare Advantage $245 -$1,268
Ambetter Exchange $278 -$1,235
AmeriHealth Managed Medicaid $715 -$799
Carolina Complete Managed Medicaid $715 -$799
Wellcare Managed Medicaid $715 -$799
Aetna Narrow Network $861 -$653
Cigna Exchange $1,171 -$343
Aetna Preferred $1,581 +$67
First Health Coventry Carelink $1,832 +$319
Blue Cross Blue Shield Commercial $1,984 +$470

6 additional plans not shown.

Rex Hospital

Cash: $2,114
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
ALIGNMENT SMART HMO $234 -$1,880
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
Cigna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
Medicare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
HEALTH TEAM ADVANTAGE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE GOLD PLUS $234 -$1,880
LIBERTY MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
TRICARE HMO $234 -$1,880
UnitedHealthcare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
WELLCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $234 -$1,880
Blue Cross Blue Shield BLUE HOME $742 -$1,372
ALLIANCE MANAGED MEDICAID $784 -$1,330

13 additional plans not shown.

Unc Hospitals

Cash: $2,114
Insurance Plan Negotiated Rate vs Cash
Aetna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
ALIGNMENT MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
ALIGNMENT PREFERRED PLUS HMO $236 -$1,878
Blue Cross Blue Shield MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
Cigna MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
Medicare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
HEALTH TEAM ADVANTAGE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE GOLD PLUS $236 -$1,878
Humana MEDICARE ADVANTAGE STATE HEALTH PLAN $236 -$1,878
LIBERTY MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
TRICARE HMO $236 -$1,878
UnitedHealthcare MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
WELLCARE MEDICARE ADVANTAGE $236 -$1,878
CAROLINA COMPLETE HEALTH MANAGED MEDICAID $1,085 -$1,029

19 additional plans not shown.

Before you call

The data in this report is from each hospital's publicly filed prices. Here's how to use it.

Confirm the price

Call the hospital's billing department and ask for a price estimate or Good Faith Estimate for MRI Lumbar Spine without Contrast (CPT 72148). Under federal law, they must provide this. Compare it to the published price in this report.

Ask about cash pay

If you haven't met your deductible, ask for the cash/self-pay rate. At many hospitals, the cash price is lower than the insurance-negotiated rate. You can see this in the insurance table above — some negotiated rates exceed the cash price.

Compare before you schedule

You are not required to use the facility your doctor referred you to. You can request a referral to any in-network facility. The same procedure, same quality — sometimes at a fraction of the price.

Ask about financial help

Most nonprofit hospitals in Virginia offer financial assistance to patients based on household income. This is separate from insurance — even insured patients can qualify. Ask billing for their Financial Assistance Policy.

Financial assistance by facility

Nonprofit hospitals are legally required to have financial assistance programs. Below is what we know about each facility's charitable care.

Facility Status Charity Care Provided How to Apply
Duke University Hospital For-profit — N/A (for-profit)
Duke Regional Hospital Local government — N/A (for-profit)
Wakemed, Raleigh Campus Nonprofit — Call billing, request Financial Assistance application
Rex Hospital State government — N/A (for-profit)
Unc Hospitals State government — N/A (for-profit)
Duke Health Raleigh Hospital — N/A (for-profit)

What to do next

  1. Identify your top 2-3 facilities based on price, quality rating, and distance. The data in this report shows that lower price does not mean lower quality — check the star ratings.
  2. Call billing before you schedule. Confirm the published price. Ask for a Good Faith Estimate. Ask whether there's a prompt-pay or cash-pay discount beyond the listed rate.
  3. Check your deductible status. If you haven't met your deductible, compare the cash rate to what you'd owe through insurance. In some cases, paying cash is cheaper than using your plan.
  4. Apply for financial assistance if your household income is under $60,000-$125,000 (thresholds vary). Most eligible patients never apply because they don't know the program exists.
  5. Get everything in writing. Before your procedure, get a written price estimate. After, review the bill line by line. Roughly 80% of hospital bills contain errors (Becker's Hospital Review).

Data sources

Hospital prices
Published machine-readable files, required under CMS Hospital Price Transparency Rule (45 CFR Part 180)
Quality ratings
CMS Hospital Compare, updated quarterly
Patient satisfaction
HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems)
Financial data
CMS Cost Reports (charity care, revenue) and IRS 990 filings (officer compensation)

This report is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Every price shown is a price a hospital published — not an estimate. Actual out-of-pocket costs depend on your insurance plan, deductible status, and clinical circumstances. Consult your healthcare provider and insurer before making decisions.