Spinal tap cost in Pittsburgh, PA
In Pittsburgh, PA, 16 hospitals list a cash price for spinal tap (lumbar puncture), diagnostic: from $383.00 to $5,030.40, with a median of $1,951.84. The lowest listed price is at Uniontown Hospital — $1,568.84 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $1,463.20 at 63 hospitals.
Cash prices at 16 facilities across 9 cities for code 62270, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 6, 2026 and Apr 14, 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 Pittsburgh, PA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uniontown Hospital lowest Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 REMOVAL OF CEREBROSPINAL FLUID WITH LOWER BACK SPINAL TAP FOR DIAGNOSTIC TEST | $383.00 | $766.00 | $46.20–$1,594.14 | 50% | — source file |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA · (724) 430-5000 DX LMBR SPI PNXR | $429.00 | $858.00 | $46.20–$1,594.14 | 50% | — source file |
| UPMC Washington Washington, PA · (724) 225-7000 LUMBAR PUNCTURE FOR DIAGNOSTIC | $459.06 | $655.80 | $48.30–$1,522.62 | 30% | — source file |
| UPMC St Margaret Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 784-4000 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $1,212.00 | $2,020.00 | $46.20–$3,281.43 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Passavant - McCandless Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 367-6700 HC SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $1,230.60 | $2,051.00 | $46.20–$3,281.43 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Jameson New Castle, PA · (724) 656-4100 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $1,335.60 | $2,226.00 | $46.20–$1,958.88 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC McKeesport McKeesport, PA · (412) 664-2000 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $1,704.00 | $2,840.00 | $46.20–$2,778.17 | 40% | — source file |
| Forbes Hospital Monroeville, PA · (412) 858-2000 HC PUNC SPINAL LUMBAR DX | $1,944.54 | $2,493.00 | $44.10–$2,104.68 | 22% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| AHN Wexford Hospital Wexford, PA · (412) 295-3319 HC PUNC SPINAL LUMBAR DX | $1,947.68 | $2,632.00 | $44.10–$2,213.42 | 26% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 641-4010 HC SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $1,956.00 | $3,260.00 | $46.20–$3,197.71 | 40% | — source file |
| West Penn Hospital Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 578-5000 HC PUNC SPINAL LUMBAR DX | $2,022.10 | $2,770.00 | $44.10–$2,337.68 | 27% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| Jefferson Regional Medical Center Jefferson Hills, PA · (412) 469-5000 HC PUNC SPINAL LUMBAR DX | $2,131.92 | $2,632.00 | $44.10–$2,182.35 | 19% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 232-8111 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $2,132.40 | $3,554.00 | $46.20–$3,376.25 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC East Monroeville, PA · (412) 357-3000 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $2,281.20 | $3,802.00 | $46.20–$3,281.43 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 692-5325 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $2,515.80 | $4,193.00 | $58.73–$3,773.70 | 40% | Mar 6, 2026 source file |
| UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh, PA · (412) 647-2345 SPINAL PUNC LUMBAR DX | $2,715.60 | $4,526.00 | $46.20–$3,847.10 | 40% | Mar 6, 2026 source file |
| Highlands Hospital Connellsville, PA · (724) 628-1500 LUMBAR PUNCTURE | $5,030.40 | $8,384.00 | $2,825.41–$6,539.52 | 40% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $383.00, median $1,951.84, highest $5,030.40 — a 13.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 15 facilities here, median $1,956.00. 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 16 of 16 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.
4 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 62270 ($846.00). 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.
| Jefferson Regional Medical Center Jefferson Hills, PAPR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $34.39 | file |
| Forbes Hospital Monroeville, PAPR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $39.82 | file |
| AHN Wexford Hospital Wexford, PAPR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $47.06 | file |
| West Penn Hospital Pittsburgh, PAPR DIAGNOSTIC LUMBAR SPINAL PUNCTURE | $48.87 | file |