Spinal tap cost in Denver, CO
In Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO, 7 hospitals list a cash price for spinal tap (lumbar puncture), diagnostic: from $191.10 to $2,107.87, with a median of $2,107.87. The lowest listed price is at Childrens Hospital Colorado — $1,916.77 less than the median here. Across Colorado, the median is $491.58 at 14 hospitals.
Cash prices at 7 facilities across 5 cities for code 62270, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Apr 30, 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 Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Childrens Hospital Colorado lowest Aurora, CO · (720) 777-1234 HB=LUMBAR PUNCTURE DX (ED) | $191.10 | $294.00 | $44.10–$650.00 | 35% | Apr 17, 2026 source file |
| Childrens Hospital Colorado Aurora, CO · (720) 777-1234 PR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $333.45 | $513.00 | $51.30–$471.96 | 35% | Apr 17, 2026 source file |
| Childrens Hospital Colorado Aurora, CO · (720) 777-1234 PR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $513.00 | $513.00 | $80.84–$461.70 | — | Apr 17, 2026 source file |
| Denver Health and Hospital Authority Denver, CO · (303) 436-4927 HC SPINAL TAP DIAGNOSTIC | $515.15 | $1,471.83 | $504.84–$3,603.00 | 65% | Apr 30, 2026 source file |
| Childrens Hospital Colorado Aurora, CO · (720) 777-1234 HB=LUMBAR PUNCTURE DIAG | $896.35 | $1,379.00 | $137.90–$1,268.68 | 35% | Apr 17, 2026 source file |
| National Jewish Health Denver, CO · (303) 388-4461 HC LUMBAR PUNCTURE DIAGNOSTIC | $1,306.20 | $1,866.00 | $744.62–$1,586.10 | 30% | — source file |
| Childrens Hospital Colorado Aurora, CO · (720) 777-1234 HB=LUMBAR PUNCTURE | $2,044.25 | $3,145.00 | $314.50–$2,893.40 | 35% | Apr 17, 2026 source file |
| AdventHealth Porter Denver, CO · (303) 778-1955 HC DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $2,107.87 | $2,107.87 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| AdventHealth Littleton Littleton, CO · (303) 730-8900 HC DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $2,107.87 | $2,107.87 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| AdventHealth Castle Rock Castle Rock, CO · (720) 455-5000 HC DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $2,107.87 | $2,107.87 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| AdventHealth Parker Parker, CO · (303) 269-4000 HC DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $2,107.87 | $2,107.87 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $191.10, median $2,107.87, highest $2,107.87 — a 11.0× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 7 facilities here, median $2,107.87. 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 3 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 it is
A spinal tap removes a small amount of spinal fluid from the lower back with a needle. It is used for meningitis, bleeding and some neurological diseases.
What the price covers
The price usually covers the procedure. The lab tests on the fluid are billed separately.
1 row held back from this comparison
It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 62270 ($844.94). 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.
| Childrens Hospital Colorado Aurora, COHB=LUMBAR PUNCTURE DX (UC) | $53.30 | file |