Thoracentesis cost in Tulsa, OK
In Tulsa, OK, 13 hospitals list a cash price for thoracentesis with imaging guidance: from $306.40 to $2,909.00, with a median of $684.00. The lowest listed price is at Cleveland Area Hospital — $377.60 less than the median here. Across Oklahoma, the median is $684.00 at 41 hospitals.
- The median here, $684.00, is 44% below the US median of $1,224.53.
- That is 1.1× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($640.89).
- 1 of 13 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 13 facilities across 8 cities for code 32555, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 5, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 4, 2025 and Nov 3, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Tulsa, OK.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Area Hospital lowest Cleveland, OK · (918) 358-2501 32555 THORACENTESIS NEEDLE CATH PLEURA W IMAGING TECH File of Mar 4, 2025 · source file | $306.40 | $383.00 | $117.25–$1,104.08 | 20% |
| Ascension St. John Jenks one side Jenks, OK · (918) 994-8100 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAG LT 61451+3 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $483.59 | $1,307.00 | $127.81 | 63% |
| St. John Sapulpa one side Sapulpa, OK · (918) 224-4280 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE LT 61487+2 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $483.59 | $1,307.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| Ascension St. John Medical Center one side Tulsa, OK · (918) 744-2296 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE RT 61493+2 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $483.59 | $1,307.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| St John Owasso one side Owasso, OK · (918) 274-5100 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE LT 61487+3 more lines at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $483.59 | $1,307.00 | $127.81–$246.19 | 63% |
| Ascension St. John Medical Center one side Tulsa, OK · (918) 744-2296 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAG RT 61027+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $498.02 | $1,346.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| St. John Sapulpa one side Sapulpa, OK · (918) 224-4280 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAG LT 61451+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $498.02 | $1,346.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| Saint Francis Hospital Yale Tulsa, OK · (918) 494-8467 Hc Thoracentesis Needle/Cath Pleura W/Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $684.00 | $1,710.00 | — | 60% |
| Saint Francis Hospital South Tulsa, OK · (918) 307-6010 Hc Thoracentesis Needle/Cath Pleura W/Imaging File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $684.00 | $1,710.00 | — | 60% |
| Hillcrest Hospital Claremore Claremore, OK · (918) 341-2556 HC Thoracentesis W/ Imaging File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $756.90 | $2,523.00 | $93.62–$2,438.00 | 70% |
| Pawhuska Hospital Pawhuska, OK · (918) 287-3232 Aspiration of fluid from chest cavity using imaging guidance File of Nov 3, 2026 · source file | $974.92 | $1,624.86 | $877.42–$1,624.86 | 40% |
| Bailey Medical Center Owasso, OK · (918) 376-8000 HC Thoracentesis W/ Imaging File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $1,174.50 | $3,915.00 | $93.62–$3,915.00 | 70% |
| Hillcrest Hospital South Tulsa, OK · (918) 294-4499 HC Thoracentesis W/ Imaging File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $1,333.20 | $4,444.00 | $93.62–$3,926.27 | 70% |
| Hillcrest Medical Center Tulsa, OK · (918) 579-1000 HC Thoracentesis W/ Imaging File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $1,722.00 | $5,740.00 | $93.62–$5,740.00 | 70% |
| Cornerstone Specialty Hospitals Broken Arrow Broken Arrow, OK · (918) 994-8100 US THORACENTESIS NEEDLE PLCMT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,909.00 | $2,909.00 | — | — |
| Cornerstone Specialty Hospitals Broken Arrow Broken Arrow, OK · (918) 994-8100 THORACENTESIS NDL W IMAGING File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,964.00 | $2,964.00 | — | — |
| St. John Sapulpa both sides Sapulpa, OK · (918) 224-4280 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAGE BI 32555 File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $747.12 | $2,019.25 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| Ascension St. John Medical Center both sides Tulsa, OK · (918) 744-2296 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAGE BI 32555 File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $747.12 | $2,019.25 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| Ascension St. John Jenks both sides Jenks, OK · (918) 994-8100 ASPIRATE PLEURA W/IMAGE BI 32555+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $967.18 | $2,614.00 | $127.81 | 63% |
| Ascension St. John Medical Center both sides Tulsa, OK · (918) 744-2296 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE BI 32555 File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $967.18 | $2,614.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| St. John Sapulpa both sides Sapulpa, OK · (918) 224-4280 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE BI 32555 File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $967.18 | $2,614.00 | $127.81–$212.24 | 63% |
| St John Owasso both sides Owasso, OK · (918) 274-5100 ASPIRATE PLEURA W IMAGE BI 32555+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $967.18 | $2,614.00 | $127.81–$246.19 | 63% |
Outpatient: lowest $306.40, median $684.00, highest $2,909.00 — a 9.5× difference within the same market.
Both sides : lowest $747.12, median $857.15, highest $967.18 — a 1.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 12 facilities here, median $720.45. 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 6 of 10 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.
1 row held back from this comparison
It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 32555 ($1,045.53). Such a line is almost always a physician's fee billed separately, an assistant's share or a placeholder — a real charge, but not the price of the procedure itself.
| Hospital | Cash price | File |
|---|---|---|
| Muscogee (CREEK) Nation Medical Center Okmulgee, OKAspiration of fluid from chest cavity using imaging guidance | $46.95 | file |