Spinal tap cost in Columbus, OH
In Columbus, OH, 19 hospitals list a cash price for spinal tap (lumbar puncture), diagnostic: from $501.80 to $2,070.10, with a median of $1,071.00. The lowest listed price is at Grady Memorial Hospital — $569.20 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $1,071.00 at 129 hospitals.
- The median here, $1,071.00, is 25% above the US median of $859.25.
- That is 1.5× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($721.17).
- Columbus, OH ranks 3rd of 4 metro areas in Ohio by median, cheapest first.
- 2 of 19 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 19 facilities across 13 cities for code 62270, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Oct 22, 2025 and Jul 31, 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 Columbus, OH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grady Memorial Hospital lowest Delaware, OH · (740) 368-5145 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $501.80 | $772.00 | — | 35% |
| Fairfield Medical Center Lancaster, OH · (740) 687-8000 Charge+3 more lines at this price File of Feb 26, 2026 · source file | $534.15 | $1,187.00 | $534.15–$1,963.00 | 55% |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC Puncture Spinal Lumbar Diagnostic File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $638.95 | $983.00 | $441.37–$4,201.00 | 35% |
| Mount Carmel East Columbus, OH · (614) 234-5000 HC Puncture Spinal Lumbar Diagnostic File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $638.95 | $983.00 | $441.37–$4,201.00 | 35% |
| Mount Carmel Dublin Dublin, OH · (380) 898-9000 HC Puncture Spinal Lumbar Diagnostic File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $638.95 | $983.00 | $441.37–$4,201.00 | 35% |
| Mount Carmel Grove City Grove City, OH HC Puncture Spinal Lumbar Diagnostic File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $638.95 | $983.00 | $441.37–$4,201.00 | 35% |
| Mount Carmel New Albany Surgical Hospital New Albany, OH · (614) 775-6600 HC Puncture Spinal Lumbar Diagnostic File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $638.95 | $983.00 | $441.37–$4,201.00 | 35% |
| Morrow County Hospital Mount Gilead, OH · (419) 946-5015 Removal of cerebrospinal fluid with lower back spinal tap for diagnostic test File of Oct 22, 2025 · source file | $800.93 | $1,232.20 | $455.91–$1,195.23 | 35% |
| Berger Hospital Circleville, OH · (740) 420-8008 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $843.05 | $1,297.00 | — | 35% |
| Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 722-2000 SPINAL PUNCTURE, LUMBAR, DIAGNOSTIC File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,071.00 | $1,190.00 | $773.50–$1,166.20 | 10% |
| Riverside Methodist Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital Pickerington, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Doctors Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Grant Medical Center Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Grove City Methodist Grove City, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Spinal Puncture Lumbar Diagnostic Wo Img File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,263.60 | $1,944.00 | — | 35% |
| Galion Community Hospital Galion, OH · (419) 468-4841 HC LUMBAR PUNCTURE DIAGNOSTIC File of Mar 20, 2026 · source file | $1,517.25 | $1,785.00 | $606.90–$1,642.20 | 15% |
| Hocking Valley Community Hospital Logan, OH · (740) 380-8000 HC Lumbar Puncture Diagnostic File of Jul 31, 2026 · source file | $1,605.61 | $1,605.61 | — | — |
| Licking Memorial Hospital Newark, OH · (740) 348-4000 HC ED Spinal Puncture,Lumbar,Diagnostic+1 more line at this price File of Mar 16, 2026 · source file | $2,070.10 | $2,070.10 | $667.00–$2,070.10 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $501.80, median $1,071.00, highest $2,070.10 — a 4.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 18 facilities here, median $957.03. 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 9 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 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 spinal tap is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Spinal tap explained.