Knee MRI cost in New Orleans, LA
In New Orleans-Metairie, LA, 13 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of knee or other lower-limb joint, no contrast dye: from $348.04 to $1,084.02, with a median of $650.08. The lowest listed price is at Ochsner Clinic Foundation — $302.04 less than the median here. Across Louisiana, the median is $866.96 at 56 hospitals.
- The median here, $650.08, is 65% below the US median of $1,852.45.
- That is 2.7× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($243.77).
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 13 facilities across 6 cities for code 73721, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Sep 16, 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 New Orleans-Metairie, LA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ochsner Clinic Foundation lowest New Orleans, LA · (504) 842-3000 HC MRI LOW EXT JT W/O CONTR File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $348.04 | $1,582.00 | $87.02–$1,903.00 | 78% |
| Ochsner Medical Center – Kenner Kenner, LA · (504) 464-8065 HC MRI LOW EXT JT W/O CONTR File of Sep 16, 2026 · source file | $504.00 | $1,800.00 | $181.55–$1,530.00 | 72% |
| St Charles Parish Hospital Luling, LA · (985) 785-3644 HC MRI LOW EXT JT W/O CONTR File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $588.87 | $2,181.00 | $87.02–$1,853.85 | 73% |
| Touro Infirmary New Orleans, LA · (504) 897-8247 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $599.62 | $4,283.00 | $1,713.20–$797.92 | 86% |
| University Med Center New Orleans, LA · (504) 702-3000 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $606.10 | $2,755.00 | $1,001.17–$951.03 | 78% |
| St Bernard Parish Hospital Chalmette, LA · (504) 826-9500 HC MRI LOW EXT JT W/O CONTR File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $607.68 | $1,899.00 | $181.55–$1,424.25 | 68% |
| New Orleans East Hospital New Orleans, LA · (504) 592-6600 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jun 24, 2026 · source file | $650.08 | $4,063.00 | $1,000.00–$491.33 | 84% |
| Omega Hospital Metairie, LA · (504) 616-3897 MRI ANY JT LOWER EXTREM W/O CONTRAST MATRL File of May 26, 2026 · source file | $725.85 | $1,244.31 | $1,244.31–$2,073.85 | 42% |
| Childrens Hospital New Orleans, LA · (504) 899-9511 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jun 24, 2026 · source file | $851.31 | $3,153.00 | $1,229.67–$977.43 | 73% |
| West Jefferson Medical Center Marrero, LA · (504) 347-5511 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jun 30, 2026 · source file | $1,025.12 | $6,407.00 | $1,234.63–$739.37 | 84% |
| East Jefferson General Hospital Metairie, LA · (504) 988-5263 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $1,084.02 | $7,743.00 | $1,006.59–$820.76 | 86% |
| Tulane Medical Center New Orleans, LA · (504) 988-5263 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jun 25, 2026 · source file | $1,084.02 | $7,743.00 | $1,006.59–$820.76 | 86% |
| Lakeside Hospital Metairie, LA · (504) 988-5263 MRI Scan of Leg Joint File of Jul 1, 2026 · source file | $1,084.02 | $7,743.00 | $1,006.59–$820.76 | 86% |
Outpatient: lowest $348.04, median $650.08, highest $1,084.02 — a 3.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $546.44. 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 8 of 13 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 6 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 knee MRI is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Knee MRI explained.