Scans and imaging CPT 72131 Outpatient

Lumbar spine CT cost in Pikeville, TN

In Pikeville, TN, 1 hospital lists a cash price for CT scan of the lower back (lumbar spine) without contrast: from $508.35 to $508.35, with a median of $508.35. Across Tennessee, the median is $598.42 at 43 hospitals.

Cash prices at 1 facility for code 72131, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 22, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 25, 2026 and Jan 25, 2026.

Lowest$508.35Erlanger Health
Median$508.35half pay less
Highest$508.35in this market
Difference1.0×highest vs lowest

Hospitals, cheapest first

HospitalCash price List priceInsurers payOff listFile date
Erlanger Health Pikeville, TN · (423) 447-2112 HC Spine,CT,Lumbar,W/O Contrast $508.35 $1,759.00 $217.24–$1,407.20 71% Jan 25, 2026
source file

Outpatient: lowest $508.35, median $508.35, highest $508.35.

As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 1 facility here, median $508.35. 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 the one hospital here that publishes insurer rates for this code, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated. 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

This CT scan shows the bones of the lower back in detail. It is used after injuries and when an MRI is not possible.

What the price covers

The price usually covers the scan. The radiologist's reading may be billed separately.

1 row held back from this comparison

It is priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 72131 ($1,166.00). 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.

Erlanger Health Pikeville, TNCHG CT LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL $106.93 file