Mid back X-ray cost in Boston, MA
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 27 hospitals list a cash price for X-ray of the mid back (thoracic spine), 2 views: from $128.00 to $1,176.00, with a median of $376.60. The lowest listed price is at Exeter Hospital — $248.60 less than the median here. Across Massachusetts, the median is $360.97 at 33 hospitals.
- The median here, $376.60, is 35% above the US median of $278.20.
- That is 3.5× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($106.81).
- 18 of 27 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 27 facilities across 20 cities for code 72070, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 3, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 15, 2025 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exeter Hospital lowest Exeter, NH · (603) 778-7311 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $128.00 | $128.00 | — | — |
| Southcoast Hospitals Group - Tobey Hospital Campus Wareham, MA · (508) 679-3131 HC X-Ray Thoracic Spine 2 Vw File of Dec 15, 2025 · source file | $137.50 | $275.00 | $58.80–$411.86 | 50% |
| Boston Medical Center South Brockton, MA · (508) 427-3000 HC Chg Radex Spine Thoracic 2 Views File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $177.99 | $395.53 | $62.86–$394.86 | 55% |
| Boston Medical Center Brighton Boston, MA · (617) 789-3000 HC Chg Radex Spine Thoracic 2 Views File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $198.44 | $440.98 | $62.86–$475.07 | 55% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham Needham, MA · (781) 453-3002 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $216.00 | $216.00 | — | — |
| Boston Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 638-8000 HC Chg Radex Spine Thoracic 2 Views File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $238.95 | $531.00 | $29.28–$512.54 | 55% |
| Melrosewakefield Healthcare Melrose, MA · (781) 979-3000 HC X-Ray Thoracic Spine 2 Vw - Xr Thoracic Spine 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $261.10 | $373.00 | $64.24–$530.75 | 30% |
| Shriners Childrens - Boston Boston, MA · (617) 722-3000 X-RAY EXAM THORAC SPINE 2VWS File of Mar 17, 2026 · source file | $299.30 | $299.30 | $29.88–$817.41 | — |
| Cambridge Health Alliance Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 HC Spine Thoracic & Lateral File of Mar 20, 2026 · source file | $319.00 | $319.00 | $40.31–$522.55 | — |
| Tufts Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 636-5000 HC X-Ray Thoracic Spine 2 Vw - Xr Thoracic Spine 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $336.00 | $480.00 | $126.05–$559.77 | 30% |
| Lowell General Hospital Lowell, MA · (978) 937-6000 HC X-Ray Thoracic Spine 2 Vw - Xr Thoracic Spine 2 File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $338.80 | $484.00 | $41.92–$484.00 | 30% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Plymouth Plymouth, MA · (508) 746-2000 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $353.00 | $353.00 | — | — |
| New England Baptist Hospital Boston, MA · (617) 754-5800 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $369.00 | $369.00 | — | — |
| Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital Brockton, MA · (508) 941-7000 XRAY; SPINE THORACIC 2 VWS File of Jan 28, 2026 · source file | $376.60 | $538.00 | $33.29–$298.59 | 30% |
| Emerson Hospital Concord, MA · (978) 369-1400 THORACIC SPINE 2 VIEWS File of May 18, 2026 · source file | $399.75 | $533.00 | $67.98–$533.00 | 25% |
| Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington Burlington, MA · (781) 744-5100 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $409.00 | $409.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton Milton, MA · (617) 696-4600 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $421.00 | $421.00 | — | — |
| Winchester Hospital Winchester, MA · (781) 729-9000 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $446.00 | $446.00 | — | — |
| Mount Auburn Hospital Cambridge, MA · (617) 492-3500 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $493.00 | $493.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 667-7000 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $534.00 | $534.00 | — | — |
| Anna Jaques Hospital Newburyport, MA · (978) 463-1000 HC X RAY SPINE THORACIC 2 VIEWS File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $653.00 | $653.00 | — | — |
| Seabrook Emergency Seabrook, NH · (603) 436-5110 Radiologic examination, spine; thoracic, 2 views +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $691.00 | $691.00 | $28.47–$894.01 | — |
| Portsmouth Regional Hospital Portsmouth, NH · (603) 436-5110 XR T-SPINE 2 VIEWS+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $691.00 | $691.00 | $28.47–$894.01 | — |
| Dover Emergency Room Dover, NH · (603) 436-5110 XR T-SPINE 2 VIEWS+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $691.00 | $691.00 | $28.47–$894.01 | — |
| Plaistow Fser Plaistow, NH · (603) 421-2100 XR T-SPINE 2 VIEWS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $1,033.75 | $1,033.75 | $31.94–$982.06 | — |
| Parkland Medical Center Derry, NH · (603) 421-2100 XR T-SPINE 2 VIEWS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $1,033.75 | $1,033.75 | $31.94–$982.06 | — |
| Frisbie Memorial Hospital Rochester, NH · (603) 332-5211 XR T-SPINE 2 VIEWS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $1,176.00 | $1,176.00 | $96.90–$940.80 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $128.00, median $376.60, highest $1,176.00 — a 9.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 20 facilities here, median $361.00. 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 11 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 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 mid back X-ray is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Mid back X-ray explained.