Thoracentesis cost in Cincinnati, OH
In Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN, 15 hospitals list a cash price for thoracentesis with imaging guidance: from $148.92 to $6,798.00, with a median of $3,249.60. The lowest listed price is at Children's Hospital Medical Center — $3,100.68 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $1,737.60 at 131 hospitals.
- The median here, $3,249.60, is 165% above the US median of $1,224.53.
- That is 5.1× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($640.89).
- Cincinnati, OH ranks 3rd of 3 metro areas in Ohio by median, cheapest first.
- 2 of 15 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 15 facilities across 9 cities for code 32555, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Jul 1, 2026.
Lowest$148.92Children's Hospital Medical Center
Median$3,249.60half of hospitals charge less
Highest$6,798.00in this market
Difference45.6×highest vs lowest
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN.
median
Lowest $148.92Highest $14,692.56
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children's Hospital Medical Center lowest Cincinnati, OH · (513) 636-3333 Hb Thorocentesis, Needle Or Cath Aspir Of Pleural With Imaging Guidance File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $148.92 | $292.00 | $73.00–$292.00 | 49% |
| McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital Oxford, OH · (513) 523-2111 HC Thoracentesis Aspirate Only W Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,604.43 | $2,139.24 | — | 25% |
| Bethesda North Cincinnati, OH · (513) 865-1111 HC Thoracentesis Aspirate Only W Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,687.50 | $2,250.00 | — | 25% |
| The Good Samaritan Hospital of Cincinnati, OH Cincinnati, OH · (513) 862-2601 HC Thoracentesis Aspirate Only W Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,687.50 | $2,250.00 | — | 25% |
| West Chester Hospital West Chester, OH · (513) 298-7701 Hc Thoracentesis Ndl Or Cath W Img Guide File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $2,461.80 | $4,103.00 | — | 40% |
| University of Cincinnati Medical Center Cincinnati, OH · (513) 584-1000 Hc Thoracentesis Ndl Or Cath W Img Guide File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $2,461.80 | $4,103.00 | — | 40% |
| St Elizabeth Edgewood Edgewood, KY · (859) 301-2000 HB THORACENTESIS ASPIR OF PLEURAL SPACE W IMAGE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,482.55 | $2,482.55 | — | — |
| Mercy Health Kings Mills Hospital Mason, OH · (513) 637-9999 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,249.60 | $5,416.00 | $611.32–$623.55 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,249.60 | $5,416.00 | $611.32–$623.55 | 40% |
| Mercy Health West Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,249.60 | $5,416.00 | $621.93–$634.37 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Fairfield Hospital Fairfield, OH · (513) 870-7000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,249.60 | $5,416.00 | $621.93–$634.37 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Fairfield Hospital Fairfield, OH · (513) 870-7000 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| Mercy Health Anderson Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 624-4500 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| Mercy Health Kings Mills Hospital Mason, OH · (513) 637-9999 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| The Jewish Hospital-Mercy Health Cincinnati, OH · (513) 686-3000 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| Mercy Health West Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC Sp Thora for Aspiration File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,651.00 | $6,085.00 | — | 40% |
| The Jewish Hospital-Mercy Health Cincinnati, OH · (513) 686-3000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,819.66 | $6,366.10 | $611.32–$623.55 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital one side Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|RIGHT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,044.60 | $6,741.00 | $611.32–$623.55 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Anderson Hospital Cincinnati, OH · (513) 624-4500 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,068.00 | $6,780.00 | $611.32 | 40% |
| Fort Hamilton Hospital Hamilton, OH · (513) 867-2123 Hc Thoracentesis For Aspiration With Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,806.00 | $12,015.00 | — | 60% |
| Mercy Health Fairfield Hospital one side Fairfield, OH · (513) 870-7000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|RIGHT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,107.30 | $8,512.17 | $621.93–$634.37 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Fairfield Hospital one side Fairfield, OH · (513) 870-7000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|LEFT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,226.70 | $8,711.17 | $621.93–$634.37 | 40% |
| Mercy Health West Hospital one side Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|RIGHT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,523.00 | $9,205.00 | $621.93–$634.37 | 40% |
| Mercy Health Clermont Hospital one side Batavia, OH · (513) 732-8278 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|LEFT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,670.60 | $9,451.00 | $611.32–$623.55 | 40% |
| Atrium Medical Center one side Middletown, OH · (513) 420-5102 HC THORACENTESIS W IMG NDL OR CATH RT+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $6,798.00 | $6,798.00 | — | — |
| Mercy Health West Hospital one side Cincinnati, OH · (513) 215-5000 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|LEFT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $12,359.28 | $20,598.80 | $3,130.45–$3,193.06 | 40% |
| Atrium Medical Center Middletown, OH · (513) 420-5102 HC THORACENTESIS W IMG NDL OR CATH BIL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $13,597.00 | $13,597.00 | — | — |
| Mercy Health Anderson Hospital one side Cincinnati, OH · (513) 624-4500 HC Aspirate Pleura W/ Imaging|RIGHT SIDE File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $14,692.56 | $24,487.60 | $1,609.51–$1,641.71 | 40% |
Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.
Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More
List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More
Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More
Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.
At or below Medicare This cash price is at or below what Medicare pays a hospital for the same service, which is unusually low. It is what the hospital's file says; confirm it and what it includes before booking. More
No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More
Check the item The description in the hospital file looks like a supply or device (a catheter, a brace, an implant), not this procedure. The hospital may have filed it under the wrong code: ask before relying on this price.
Outpatient: lowest $148.92, median $3,249.60, highest $6,798.00 — a 45.6× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 13 facilities here, median $3,249.60. 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 none is it 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 thoracentesis is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Thoracentesis explained.