Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Connecticut
In Connecticut, 12 hospitals publish a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye: from $1,698.00 to $3,117.59, with a median of $2,532.00. The lowest price is at Connecticut Children's (Hartford). The highest price is 1.8× the lowest.
- The median here, $2,532.00, is 8% below the US median of $2,750.28.
- That is 7.1× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($356.43).
- Connecticut ranks 22nd of 51 states by median, cheapest first.
- 5 of 12 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Connecticut law (C.G.S. §19a-673): if you are uninsured, your income is at or below 250% of the federal poverty level and Medicaid has turned you down, a hospital and the clinicians billing through it may collect no more than the cost of your care (its charges times its cost-to-charge ratio), which is usually well below its list price. Ask the billing office to apply it. Other states' laws.
Outpatient cash prices, one line per hospital — its lowest listed price for code 72158. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Sep 27, 2026. See them on a map
Lowest$1,698.00Connecticut Children's
Median$2,532.00half of hospitals charge less
Highest$3,117.59in Connecticut
Lowest saves$834.00vs the median
Hospitals in Connecticut, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | File date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut Children's lowest Hartford · Hartford, CT MRI Lumbar Spine W & WO Contr | $1,698.00 | $2,830.00 | Jan 1, 2026 source file |
| Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center Hartford · Hartford, CT HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $1,958.00 | $3,560.00 | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Johnson Memorial Hospital Stafford Springs · Stafford Springs, CT HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $1,965.70 | $3,574.00 | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Day Kimball Healthcare Putnam · Putnam, CT MRI LS SPINE W/WO CO | $2,411.27 | $6,328.80 | Aug 1, 2026 source file |
| Saint Marys Hospital Waterbury · Waterbury, CT HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O & W/Contrast | $2,526.15 | $4,593.00 | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Hartford Hospital Hartford · Hartford, CT HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Charlotte Hungerford Hospital Torrington · Torrington, CT HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The Hospital of Central Connecticut New Britain · New Britain, CT HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| The William W Backus Hospital Norwich · Norwich, CT HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| UConn Health, Waterbury Hospital Waterbury · Waterbury, CT MRI Spine Lumbar w wo Contrast | $2,798.48 | $5,596.95 | May 13, 2026 source file |
| John Dempsey Hospital of the University of Connecticut Farmington · Farmington, CT HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $3,085.20 | $5,142.00 | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
| Manchester Memorial Hospital Manchester · Manchester, CT MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMB WO&W/CON | $3,117.59 | $3,117.59 | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
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
File date When the hospital last updated its price file, as the file says itself. A dash means the file gives no date.
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
By metro area
Each metro page compares every listing, including prices for both sides of the body.
| Metro area | Hospitals | Lowest | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford, CT | 3 | $1,698.00 | $1,958.00 |
| Waterbury, CT | 2 | $2,526.15 | $2,662.32 |
| Farmington, CT | 1 | $3,085.20 | $3,085.20 |
| Manchester, CT | 1 | $3,117.59 | $3,117.59 |
| New Britain, CT | 1 | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 |
| Norwich, CT | 1 | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 |
| Putnam, CT | 1 | $2,411.27 | $2,411.27 |
| Stafford Springs, CT | 1 | $1,965.70 | $1,965.70 |
| Torrington, CT | 1 | $2,532.00 | $2,532.00 |
Market A metro area (as the Census Bureau defines it) or, outside metro areas, a town. Each links to every hospital price there.
Hospitals How many hospitals publish a cash price for this code here. Each hospital counts once, at its lowest outpatient cash price.
Lowest The lowest cash price among those hospitals.
Median The middle cash price: half of the hospitals charge less, half charge more. One price per hospital. More
What lower back MRI with contrast is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Lower back MRI with contrast explained.
MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye in other states
- Alabama$2,429.59
- Alaska$4,207.87
- Arizona$2,468.24
- Arkansas$1,336.18
- California$4,517.08
- Colorado$3,216.70
- Delaware$3,788.10
- District of Columbia$3,211.00, 3 hospitals
- Florida$4,972.00
- Georgia$2,370.03
- Hawaii$2,461.20
- Idaho$2,275.50
- Illinois$4,033.80
- Indiana$1,463.94
- Iowa$3,450.20
- Kansas$1,731.23
- Kentucky$2,276.40
- Louisiana$1,375.63
- Maine$2,302.80
- Maryland$872.38
- Massachusetts$2,760.80
- Michigan$2,731.30
- Minnesota$2,691.92
- Mississippi$1,942.17
- Missouri$2,473.17
- Montana$2,670.74
- Nebraska$3,980.70
- Nevada$4,317.05
- New Hampshire$3,858.16
- New Jersey$1,007.75
- New Mexico$2,862.81
- New York$1,777.32
- North Carolina$2,886.50
- North Dakota$3,103.03
- Ohio$2,335.45
- Oklahoma$1,617.85
- Oregon$2,972.70
- Pennsylvania$3,268.70
- Puerto Rico$985.00
- Rhode Island$3,257.40
- South Carolina$2,832.60
- South Dakota$4,410.40
- Tennessee$1,424.84
- Texas$3,196.33
- Utah$5,448.79
- Vermont$4,713.00
- Virginia$3,315.50
- Washington$2,901.65
- West Virginia$1,909.25
- Wisconsin$3,415.00
- Wyoming$2,552.46
Median cash price across the state's hospitals.