Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Bismarck, ND — inpatient
In Bismarck, ND, 2 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye as an inpatient: from $2,419.95 to $3,861.60, with a median of $3,140.78. The lowest listed price is at St. Alexius Medical Center — $720.83 less than the median here. Across North Dakota, the median is $2,884.67 at 10 hospitals.
Cash prices at 2 facilities for code 72158, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Mar 4, 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 Bismarck, ND.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Alexius Medical Center lowest Bismarck, ND · (701) 530-7000 HC MR LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $2,419.95 | $4,745.00 | $3,511.30–$4,270.50 | 49% | Feb 28, 2026 source file |
| Sanford Medical Center Bismarck Bismarck, ND · (701) 323-6000 MRI L SPINE WO THEN W CONT | $3,861.60 | $4,827.00 | $2,654.85–$4,344.30 | 20% | Mar 4, 2026 source file |
Inpatient: lowest $2,419.95, median $3,140.78, highest $3,861.60 — a 1.6× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 2 facilities here, median $3,140.78 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At 2 of 2 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 it is
This MRI of the lumbar spine takes one set of pictures without contrast dye and a second set after the dye is injected into a vein. The dye helps tell scar tissue from a new disc problem after back surgery and can show infection, inflammation or tumors.
What the price covers
The hospital price usually covers both sets of images; the contrast agent may appear as a separate line on some bills. The radiologist's reading is often billed separately.