Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Columbus, OH — inpatient
In Columbus, OH, 15 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye as an inpatient: from $1,842.75 to $3,249.00, with a median of $2,029.95. The lowest listed price is at Riverside Methodist Hospital and 5 other hospitals — $187.20 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $2,123.55 at 87 hospitals.
Cash prices at 15 facilities across 9 cities for code 72158, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 31, 2026 and Apr 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 Columbus, OH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside Methodist Hospital lowest Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital lowest Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grant Medical Center lowest Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital lowest Pickerington, OH Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Doctors Hospital lowest Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grove City Methodist lowest Grove City, OH Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,842.75 | $2,835.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grady Memorial Hospital Delaware, OH · (740) 368-5145 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $1,924.65 | $2,961.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Berger Hospital Circleville, OH · (740) 420-8008 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine W Wo Contrast | $2,029.95 | $3,123.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Diley Ridge Medical Center Canal Winchester, OH · (614) 838-7911 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $295.72–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel Grove City Grove City, OH HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $290.16–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $295.72–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel Dublin Dublin, OH · (380) 898-9000 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $295.72–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel New Albany Surgical Hospital New Albany, OH · (614) 775-6600 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $295.72–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel East Columbus, OH · (614) 234-5000 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,335.45 | $3,593.00 | $290.16–$3,593.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 722-2000 SPINE, LUMBAR, W/ & W/O CONTRAST | $3,249.00 | $3,610.00 | $2,346.50–$3,537.80 | 10% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Inpatient: lowest $1,842.75, median $2,029.95, highest $3,249.00 — a 1.8× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 16 facilities here, median $2,182.70 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At 7 of 7 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 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.