Psychological testing, 1st hour cost in Boston, MA — inpatient
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 4 hospitals list a cash price for psychological testing evaluation by a psychologist or physician, first hour as an inpatient: from $191.25 to $245.00, with a median of $237.31. The lowest listed price is at Boston Medical Center — $46.06 less than the median here. Across Massachusetts, the median is $241.81 at 6 hospitals.
Cash prices at 4 facilities across 2 cities for code 96130, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between — and —.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Medical Center lowest Boston, MA · (617) 638-8000 HC Psychological Tst Eval Svc Phys/Qhp First Hour | $191.25 | $425.00 | $49.25–$512.54 | 55% | — source file |
| Cambridge Health Alliance Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 Psychological Tst Eval Svc Phys/Qhp First Hour | $236.00 | $236.00 | $0.70–$281.86 | — | — source file |
| Boston Medical Center Brighton Boston, MA · (617) 789-3000 HC Psychological Tst Eval Svc Phys/Qhp First Hour | $238.62 | $530.26 | $71.09–$475.07 | 55% | — source file |
| Tufts Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 636-5000 Hosp Psychological Tst Eval Svc Phys/Qhp | $245.00 | $350.00 | $55.97–$563.51 | 30% | — source file |
| Cambridge Health Alliance Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 HC Psycl Tst Eval Phys/Qhp 1st | $308.00 | $308.00 | $0.70–$308.00 | — | — source file |
Inpatient: lowest $191.25, median $237.31, highest $245.00 — a 1.3× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 4 facilities here, median $237.31 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
Cash or insurance?
At 4 of 4 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 code covers the first hour of a psychologist's or physician's work on psychological testing: choosing tests, interpreting results, writing the report and reviewing the findings with the patient. It is often part of an ADHD, learning or mood evaluation.
What the price covers
The price covers the first hour of evaluation work. Each additional hour is billed with an add-on code (96131), and giving and scoring the tests is billed under separate codes.