New patient visit, 15 min cost in California

In California, 90 hospitals publish a cash price for new patient office visit, straightforward problem or 15+ minutes: from $20.81 to $1,186.99, with a median of $139.65. The lowest price is at Eisenhower Medical Center (Rancho Mirage). The highest price is 57.0× the lowest.

• The median here, $139.65, is 9% above the US median of $127.79.
• That is about the same as Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($136.02).
• California ranks 28th of 50 states by median, cheapest first.
• 23 of 90 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.

California law (Health and Safety Code §127405): if you are uninsured or have high medical costs and your family income is at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, a hospital may not expect you to pay more than it would expect from Medicare or Medi-Cal, whichever is greater. That can be less than the cash prices below; ask the hospital for its discount payment policy. A separate physician fee may still apply. Other states' laws.

Outpatient cash prices, one line per hospital — its lowest listed price for code 99202. Prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Collected Nov 8, 2026. See them on a map