SelfPayRates — hospital cash prices, from the source

MRI of the lower back, no contrast dye in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA

Cash prices at 8 facilities across 6 cities for code 72148, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Sep 1, 2026 and Sep 1, 2026.

HospitalCash price List priceOffFile date
Paradise Valley Hospital NATIONAL CITY, CA
MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CON
$305.00 $3,660.20 92% Sep 1, 2026
file
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - SAN DIEGO - CLAIREMONT MESA SAN DIEGO, CA
MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL
$2,496.00 $4,800.00 48%
file
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - SAN DIEGO - ZION SAN DIEGO, CA
MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL
$2,496.00 $4,800.00 48%
file
KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITAL - SAN MARCOS SAN MARCOS, CA
MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST MATERIAL
$2,496.00 $4,800.00 48%
file
Sharp Coronado Hospital and Healthcare Center CORONADO, CA
HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE - MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST
$3,111.75 $4,149.00 25%
file
Sharp Memorial Hospital SAN DIEGO, CA
HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE - MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST
$3,111.75 $4,149.00 25%
file
Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center CHULA VISTA, CA
HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE - MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST
$3,111.75 $4,149.00 25%
file
Grossmont Hospital Corporation LA MESA, CA
HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE - MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST
$3,111.75 $4,149.00 25%
file

Outpatient: lowest $305.00, median $2,803.88, highest $3,111.75 — a 10.2× difference within the same market.

As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 7 facilities here, median $3,111.75. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.

Other markets for this procedure