Critical care (first hour) cost in Boston, MA
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 26 hospitals list a cash price for critical care, first 30 to 74 minutes: from $551.00 to $16,022.25, with a median of $3,644.00. The lowest listed price is at Cambridge Health Alliance — $3,093.00 less than the median here. Across Massachusetts, the median is $2,675.75 at 32 hospitals.
- The median here, $3,644.00, is 81% above the US median of $2,018.81.
- That is 4.3× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($843.92).
- 17 of 26 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 26 facilities across 20 cities for code 99291, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 3, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 15, 2025 and Sep 1, 2026.
Lowest$551.00Cambridge Health Alliance
Median$3,644.00half of hospitals charge less
Highest$16,022.25in this market
Difference29.1×highest vs lowest
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.
median
Lowest $551.00Highest $16,022.25
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge Health Alliance lowest Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 Critical Care Ill/Injured Patient Init 30-74 Min File of Mar 20, 2026 · source file | $551.00 | $551.00 | $155.81–$750.20 | — |
| Melrosewakefield Healthcare Melrose, MA · (781) 979-3000 Hospital Critical Care File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $812.70 | $1,161.00 | $372.00–$2,361.28 | 30% |
| Boston Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 638-8000 HC Critical Care Ill/Injured Patient Init 30-74 Min File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $1,155.60 | $2,568.00 | $431.24–$2,357.47 | 55% |
| Boston Medical Center South Brockton, MA · (508) 427-3000 HC Critical Care Ill/Injured Patient Init 30-74 Min File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $1,238.99 | $2,753.31 | $394.86–$2,438.26 | 55% |
| Boston Medical Center Brighton Boston, MA · (617) 789-3000 HC Critical Care Ill/Injured Patient Init 30-74 Min File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $1,503.27 | $3,340.59 | $475.07–$2,809.83 | 55% |
| Lowell General Hospital Lowell, MA · (978) 937-6000 Hospital Critical Care File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,521.10 | $2,173.00 | $201.39–$3,043.94 | 30% |
| Tufts Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 636-5000 Hospital Critical Care File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,534.40 | $2,192.00 | $575.62–$3,819.78 | 30% |
| Southcoast Hospitals Group - Tobey Hospital Campus Wareham, MA · (508) 679-3131 HC Critical Care Ill/Injured Patient Init 30-74 Min File of Dec 15, 2025 · source file | $1,723.50 | $3,447.00 | $317.99–$3,067.83 | 50% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton Milton, MA · (617) 696-4600 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,152.00 | $2,152.00 | — | — |
| Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital Brockton, MA · (508) 941-7000 CRITICAL CARE; 1ST HR (ER) File of Jan 28, 2026 · source file | $2,257.50 | $3,225.00 | $299.00–$1,505.00 | 30% |
| Emerson Hospital Concord, MA · (978) 369-1400 CRITICAL CARE 1ST HR+1 more line at this price File of May 18, 2026 · source file | $2,503.50 | $3,338.00 | $638.00–$3,338.00 | 25% |
| Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington Burlington, MA · (781) 744-5100 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,884.00 | $2,884.00 | — | — |
| Cambridge Health Alliance Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 HC Critical Care-1st Hour File of Mar 20, 2026 · source file | $3,200.00 | $3,200.00 | $155.81–$3,200.00 | — |
| New England Baptist Hospital Boston, MA · (617) 754-5800 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,470.00 | $3,470.00 | — | — |
| Frisbie Memorial Hospital Rochester, NH · (603) 332-5211 Critical care, evaluation and management of the critically ill or critically injured patient; first 30-74 minutes +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $3,818.00 | $3,818.00 | $314.60–$15,343.00 | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Plymouth Plymouth, MA · (508) 746-2000 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,926.00 | $3,926.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 667-7000 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,970.00 | $3,970.00 | — | — |
| Exeter Hospital Exeter, NH · (603) 778-7311 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,140.00 | $4,140.00 | — | — |
| Mount Auburn Hospital Cambridge, MA · (617) 492-3500 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,394.00 | $4,394.00 | — | — |
| Anna Jaques Hospital Newburyport, MA · (978) 463-1000 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,181.00 | $5,181.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham Needham, MA · (781) 453-3002 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $5,253.00 | $5,253.00 | — | — |
| Winchester Hospital Winchester, MA · (781) 729-9000 HC CRITICAL CARE ILL INJURED PATIENT INIT 30 TO 74 MIN File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $6,462.00 | $6,462.00 | — | — |
| Portsmouth Regional Hospital Portsmouth, NH · (603) 436-5110 CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MINS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $9,833.00 | $9,833.00 | $405.12–$9,341.35 | — |
| Seabrook Emergency Seabrook, NH · (603) 436-5110 CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MINS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $9,833.00 | $9,833.00 | $405.12–$9,341.35 | — |
| Dover Emergency Room Dover, NH · (603) 436-5110 CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MINS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $9,833.00 | $9,833.00 | $405.12–$9,341.35 | — |
| Parkland Medical Center Derry, NH · (603) 421-2100 CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MINS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $16,022.25 | $16,022.25 | $495.09–$15,221.14 | — |
| Plaistow Fser Plaistow, NH · (603) 421-2100 CRIT CARE 1ST 30-74 MINS File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $16,022.25 | $16,022.25 | $495.09–$15,221.14 | — |
Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.
Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More
List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More
Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More
Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.
At or below Medicare This cash price is at or below what Medicare pays a hospital for the same service, which is unusually low. It is what the hospital's file says; confirm it and what it includes before booking. More
No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More
Outpatient: lowest $551.00, median $3,644.00, highest $16,022.25 — a 29.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 20 facilities here, median $2,693.75. 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 10 of 16 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 critical care (first hour) is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Critical care (first hour) explained.