Head CT scan cost in Washington, DC
In Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, 19 hospitals list a cash price for CT scan of the head or brain, no contrast dye: from $69.83 to $3,669.12, with a median of $942.50. The lowest listed price is at MedStar Montgomery Medical Center — $872.67 less than the median here. Across District of Columbia, the median is $1,382.50 at 3 hospitals.
- The median here, $942.50, is 22% below the US median of $1,201.00.
- That is 8.8× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($106.81).
- 3 of 19 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 19 facilities across 16 cities for code 70450, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Oct 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 30, 2024 and Sep 1, 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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MedStar Montgomery Medical Center lowest Olney, MD · (301) 774-8882 CT OR BRAIN WITHOUT CONTRAST+3 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $69.83 | $71.25 | $69.83–$71.25 | 2% |
| MedStar Southern Hospital Center Clinton, MD · (301) 868-8000 BC-CT HEAD OR BRAIN WO CONT+3 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $86.60 | $88.37 | $86.60–$88.37 | 2% |
| Frederick Health Hospital Frederick, MD · (240) 566-3300 CT HEAD WO CONT File of Mar 17, 2025 · source file | $105.26 | $107.41 | $105.26–$107.41 | 2% |
| Inova Loudoun Hospital Leesburg, VA · (703) 858-6600 HC CT HEAD-BRAIN WO IV CONT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $627.50 | $1,255.00 | $106.34–$1,739.00 | 50% |
| Inova Mount Vernon Hospital Alexandria, VA · (703) 664-7105 HC CT HEAD-BRAIN WO IV CONT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $627.50 | $1,255.00 | $106.34–$1,739.00 | 50% |
| Inova Alexandria Hospital Alexandria, VA · (703) 504-3167 HC CT HEAD-BRAIN WO IV CONT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $627.50 | $1,255.00 | $106.34–$1,739.00 | 50% |
| Inova Fairfax Hospital Falls Church, VA · (703) 698-1110 HC CT HEAD-BRAIN WO IV CONT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $627.50 | $1,255.00 | $106.34–$1,739.00 | 50% |
| Inova Fair Oaks Hospital Fairfax, VA · (703) 391-4170 HC CT HEAD-BRAIN WO IV CONT File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $627.50 | $1,255.00 | $106.34–$1,739.00 | 50% |
| Jefferson Medical Center Ranson, WV · (304) 728-1600 CT HEAD/BRAIN W/O DYE File of Jul 12, 2026 · source file | $670.00 | $1,340.00 | — | 50% |
| Mary Washington Hospital Fredericksburg, VA · (540) 741-1100 Ct head/brain w/o dye File of Dec 30, 2024 · source file | $942.50 | $1,885.00 | $105.00–$2,641.00 | 50% |
| Stafford Hospital Stafford, VA · (540) 741-9000 Ct head/brain w/o dye File of Dec 30, 2024 · source file | $942.50 | $1,885.00 | $105.00–$2,641.00 | 50% |
| Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center Woodbridge, VA · (703) 523-1000 Chgr-Ct Head Region W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,328.00 | $2,656.00 | — | 50% |
| MedStar Washington Hospital Center Washington, DC · (202) 877-7000 CT HEAD OR BRAIN WO CONTRAST+4 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,372.20 | $2,111.08 | $591.10–$1,794.42 | 35% |
| Children's National Hospital Washington, DC · (202) 476-5000 CT Brain Stealth/ROSA+4 more lines at this price File of Apr 2, 2026 · source file | $1,382.50 | $2,765.00 | $79.03–$2,300.29 | 50% |
| Fauquier Health Warrenton, VA · (540) 316-5000 Computed tomography, head or brain; without contrast material File of Jul 14, 2026 · source file | $1,612.00 | $4,030.00 | $1,524.00 | 60% |
| MedStar Georgetown Hospital Northwest Washington, DC · (202) 784-3000 CT HEAD WITHOUT CONTRAST+4 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,643.56 | $2,528.55 | $701.78–$2,275.70 | 35% |
| Stonesprings Hospital Center Dulles, VA · (571) 349-4000 Computed tomography, head or brain; without contrast material +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $3,122.52 | $3,122.52 | $424.62–$2,654.14 | — |
| Reston Hospital Center Reston, VA · (703) 689-9000 CT HEAD/BRAIN W/O CONT File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $3,240.38 | $3,240.38 | $2,300.67 | — |
| Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center Fredericksburg, VA · (540) 498-4000 Computed tomography, head or brain; without contrast material +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $3,669.12 | $3,669.12 | $283.08–$3,302.21 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $69.83, median $942.50, highest $3,669.12 — a 52.5× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 12 facilities here, median $785.00. 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 13 of 17 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 head CT scan is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Head CT scan explained.