Joint injection (small joint) cost in Baltimore, MD
In Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, 3 hospitals list a cash price for joint injection or drainage, small joint (fingers, toes): from $119.00 to $192.19, with a median of $132.00. The lowest listed price is at Greater Baltimore Medical Center — $13.00 less than the median here. Across Maryland, the median is $132.00 at 5 hospitals.
Cash prices at 3 facilities across 2 cities for code 20600, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 22, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Baltimore Medical Center lowest Towson, MD · (443) 849-2000 Arthrocentesis Aspir&/Inj Small Jt/Bursa W/O US | $119.00 | $119.00 | $98.41–$119.00 | — | — source file |
| The Kennedy Krieger Institute Baltimore, MD · (443) 923-9301 HC ARTHROCENTESIS SMALL JOINT OR BURSA | $132.00 | $165.00 | $33.07–$165.00 | 20% | — source file |
| Mercy Medical Center Baltimore, MD · (410) 332-9237 HC ARTHROCENTESIS ASPIR&/INJ SMALL JT/BURSA W/O US | $192.19 | $196.11 | $196.11–$192.19 | 2% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $119.00, median $132.00, highest $192.19 — a 1.6× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $155.60. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 1 of 3 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What it is
This code covers injecting or draining a small joint, such as a finger or toe joint.
What the price covers
The price usually covers the injection. The steroid or other medicine may be billed separately.