Barium swallow cost in Oklahoma City, OK
In Oklahoma City, OK, 6 hospitals list a cash price for barium swallow (esophagus X-ray with contrast): from $137.70 to $567.45, with a median of $176.63. The lowest listed price is at OU Health - University of Oklahoma Medical Center|Oklahoma Childrens Hospital| OU Health Edmond Medical Center — $38.93 less than the median here. Across Oklahoma, the median is $286.90 at 24 hospitals.
Cash prices at 6 facilities across 3 cities for code 74220, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 27, 2026 and Jun 12, 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 Oklahoma City, OK.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OU Health - University of Oklahoma Medical Center|Oklahoma Childrens Hospital| OU Health Edmond Medical Center lowest Oklahoma City, OK SINGLE CONTRAST X-RAY OF ESOPHAGUS | $137.70 | $1,377.00 | $167.87–$448.00 | 90% | — source file |
| Mercy Hospital Logan County Crescent, OK Radiologic Exam Esophagus Single Contrast Study | $150.00 | $200.00 | $110.00 | 25% | Jun 12, 2026 source file |
| Mercy Hospital Logan County Crescent, OK Radiologic Exam Esophagus Single Contrast Study | $150.00 | $200.00 | $110.00 | 25% | Jun 12, 2026 source file |
| Oklahoma Heart Hospital Oklahoma City, OK · (405) 608-3200 HC Esophagram - Fl Esophagus Barium Swallow | $176.63 | $504.66 | $54.76–$454.19 | 65% | Mar 27, 2026 source file |
| Oklahoma Heart Hospital South Oklahoma City, OK · (405) 628-6000 HC Esophagram - Fl Esophagus Barium Swallow | $176.63 | $504.66 | $54.76–$454.19 | 65% | Mar 27, 2026 source file |
| Mercy Hospital Logan County Guthrie, OK · (405) 282-6700 Xr Esophagus/Barium Swallow | $525.85 | $809.00 | $57.74–$464.00 | 35% | — source file |
| Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City Oklahoma City, OK · (405) 755-1515 Xr Esophagus/Barium Swallow | $567.45 | $873.00 | $36.00–$365.31 | 35% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $137.70, median $176.63, highest $567.45 — a 4.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 5 facilities here, median $176.63. 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 3 of 6 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
A barium swallow is a live X-ray of the esophagus while you drink barium. It shows narrowing, hernias and problems with how food passes.
What the price covers
The price usually covers the study and the barium. 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 74220 ($425.55). 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.
| OU Health - University of Oklahoma Medical Center|Oklahoma Childrens Hospital| OU Health Edmond Medical Center Oklahoma City, OKX-RAY XM ESOPHAGUS 1CNTRST | $21.88 | file |