Lumbar spine CT cost in Grand Rapids, MI
In Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI, 12 hospitals list a cash price for CT scan of the lower back (lumbar spine) without contrast: from $380.00 to $1,477.00, with a median of $791.00. The lowest listed price is at University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Carson — $411.00 less than the median here. Across Michigan, the median is $1,083.55 at 95 hospitals.
- The median here, $791.00, is 43% below the US median of $1,397.59.
- That is 7.4× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($106.81).
- Grand Rapids, MI has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in Michigan with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- 8 of 12 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 12 facilities across 9 cities for code 72131, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 5, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Nov 21, 2025 and May 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 Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Carson lowest Carson City, MI · (989) 584-3131 HB CT Scan,Lumbar Spine,W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $380.00 | $1,520.00 | $56.68–$1,231.20 | 75% |
| University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Ionia Ionia, MI · (616) 527-4200 HB CT Scan,Lumbar Spine,W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $457.50 | $1,830.00 | $192.00–$783.64 | 75% |
| Corewell Health Butterworth Hospital Grand Rapids, MI · (616) 391-1774 HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST+2 more lines at this price File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $592.00 | $592.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Blodgett Hospital Grand Rapids, MI · (616) 391-1774 HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $592.00 | $592.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Blodgett Hospital East Grand Rapids, MI Hc Ct Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $592.00 | $592.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Greenville Hospital Greenville, MI · (616) 754-4691 Hc Ct Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $791.00 | $791.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Zeeland Community Hospital Zeeland, MI · (616) 772-4644 Hc Ct Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $791.00 | $791.00 | — | — |
| Mercy Health Saint Marys Grand Rapids, MI · (616) 685-5000 HC CT Lumbar Spine W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $960.05 | $1,477.00 | $58.40–$1,477.00 | 35% |
| Corewell Helen Devos Childrens Hospital Grand Rapids, MI HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $1,015.00 | $1,015.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Greenville Hospital Greenville, MI · (616) 754-4691 HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $1,151.00 | $1,151.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Zeeland Community Hospital Zeeland, MI · (616) 772-4644 HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $1,151.00 | $1,151.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Pennock Hospital Hastings, MI · (269) 945-3451 HC CT LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $1,151.00 | $1,151.00 | — | — |
| Sheridan Community Hospital Sheridan, MI · (989) 291-3261 CT SCAN SPINE/LUMBAR WO MAZOR+1 more line at this price File of Apr 22, 2026 · source file | $1,257.60 | $1,572.00 | $31.51–$1,388.08 | 20% |
| Trinity Health Grand Haven Hospital Grand Haven, MI · (616) 847-5268 CT LUMBAR W O CONTRAST File of Nov 21, 2025 · source file | $1,477.00 | $1,477.00 | $57.00–$905.91 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $380.00, median $791.00, highest $1,477.00 — a 3.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 10 facilities here, median $875.53. 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 4 of 5 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 lumbar spine CT is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Lumbar spine CT explained.
2 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 72131 ($1,377.00). 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.
| Hospital | Cash price | File |
|---|---|---|
| University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Carson Carson City, MICHG CT LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL | $131.00 | file |
| University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Ionia Ionia, MICHG CT LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL | $131.00 | file |