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Procedure price report · Incision of pleura, thoracentesis, chest drainage

Chest drain catheter left in place, with imaging guidance

CPT 32557the billing code this page is about

A catheter is placed through the skin into the space around the lung using ultrasound or other imaging and left in place to drain fluid over time.

Hospitals typically charge $1,756 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 2,276 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $1,829. Most fall between $845 and $3,247 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
2,276
States
50
Filings dated
Nov 2023 – Sep 2026
Computed
September 25, 2026
Prices checked
through September 24, 2026

Median: half of hospitals filed less, half more — and it is a price some hospital actually filed. Average of the middle 60%: the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain average, the lowest or the highest price: the extremes in hospital price files are chargemaster artefacts, not prices anyone pays.

What hospitals charge, from cheapest to most expensive

Cash price percentiles, outpatient, across 2,276 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$485$984$1,756$2,829$4,469

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 9.2× what the cheapest tenth charges ($485 vs $4,469).

How the prices are spread

$307 – $411: 68 hospitals$307$411 – $551: 91 hospitals$551 – $739: 129 hospitals$551$739 – $990: 170 hospitals$990 – $1,327: 250 hospitals$990$1,327 – $1,779: 329 hospitals$1,779 – $2,384: 390 hospitals$1,779$2,384 – $3,195: 268 hospitals$3,195 – $4,282: 219 hospitals$3,195$4,282 – $5,738: 136 hospitals$4,282median $1,756price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (2,050 of 2,276 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$307$41168
$411$55191
$551$739129
$739$990170
$990$1,327250
$1,327$1,779329
$1,779$2,384390
$2,384$3,195268
$3,195$4,282219
$4,282$5,738136

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$1,608
Median cash price$1,756
Cash as a multiple of Medicare1.09×

The Medicare figure is the national unadjusted OPPS rate for this code — what Medicare itself pays a hospital before local wage adjustment. It is a benchmark, not a price anyone is charged.

By state

The median cash price in each state, against the national median of $1,756.

Alaska: median $3,071 across 10 hospitalsAK$3,071Maine: median $966 across 13 hospitalsME$966Vermont: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureVTNew Hampshire: median $1,182 across 13 hospitalsNH$1,182Washington: median $2,009 across 56 hospitalsWA$2,009Idaho: median $1,633 across 14 hospitalsID$1,633Montana: median $1,031 across 17 hospitalsMT$1,031North Dakota: median $1,911 across 11 hospitalsND$1,911Minnesota: median $1,498 across 64 hospitalsMN$1,498Illinois: median $1,634 across 90 hospitalsIL$1,634Wisconsin: median $1,471 across 85 hospitalsWI$1,471Michigan: median $1,500 across 78 hospitalsMI$1,500New York: median $1,838 across 79 hospitalsNY$1,838Massachusetts: median $1,798 across 40 hospitalsMA$1,798Oregon: median $1,686 across 42 hospitalsOR$1,686Nevada: median $1,260 across 14 hospitalsNV$1,260Wyoming: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureWYSouth Dakota: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureSDIowa: median $1,511 across 30 hospitalsIA$1,511Indiana: median $1,263 across 60 hospitalsIN$1,263Ohio: median $2,679 across 119 hospitalsOH$2,679Pennsylvania: median $2,100 across 117 hospitalsPA$2,100New Jersey: median $2,067 across 57 hospitalsNJ$2,067Connecticut: median $1,349 across 17 hospitalsCT$1,349Rhode Island: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureRICalifornia: median $2,589 across 173 hospitalsCA$2,589Utah: median $2,661 across 30 hospitalsUT$2,661Colorado: median $2,234 across 46 hospitalsCO$2,234Nebraska: median $1,275 across 32 hospitalsNE$1,275Missouri: median $1,471 across 59 hospitalsMO$1,471Kentucky: median $1,432 across 25 hospitalsKY$1,432West Virginia: median $1,803 across 27 hospitalsWV$1,803Virginia: median $1,397 across 44 hospitalsVA$1,397Maryland: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureMDDelaware: 7 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureDEArizona: median $1,063 across 43 hospitalsAZ$1,063New Mexico: median $2,015 across 17 hospitalsNM$2,015Kansas: median $1,112 across 34 hospitalsKS$1,112Arkansas: median $731 across 19 hospitalsAR$731Tennessee: median $674 across 51 hospitalsTN$674North Carolina: median $1,313 across 64 hospitalsNC$1,313South Carolina: median $2,067 across 39 hospitalsSC$2,067Oklahoma: median $1,311 across 36 hospitalsOK$1,311Louisiana: median $864 across 35 hospitalsLA$864Mississippi: median $653 across 40 hospitalsMS$653Alabama: median $1,404 across 32 hospitalsAL$1,404Georgia: median $2,228 across 73 hospitalsGA$2,228Hawaii: median $1,367 across 14 hospitalsHI$1,367Texas: median $2,239 across 165 hospitalsTX$2,239Florida: median $2,081 across 106 hospitalsFL$2,081
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $1,756. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
Alaska AK10$3,071+75%$1,539 – $3,825
Ohio OH119$2,679+53%$1,404 – $4,645
Utah UT30$2,661+52%$2,135 – $3,130
California CA173$2,589+47%$1,002 – $3,748
Texas TX165$2,239+28%$1,457 – $3,408
Colorado CO46$2,234+27%$1,025 – $5,738
Georgia GA73$2,228+27%$1,436 – $3,691
Pennsylvania PA117$2,100+20%$931 – $5,848
Florida FL106$2,081+19%$1,002 – $4,393
New Jersey NJ57$2,067+18%$1,719 – $4,627
South Carolina SC39$2,067+18%$1,114 – $3,169
New Mexico NM17$2,015+15%$1,222 – $2,901
Washington WA56$2,009+14%$844 – $3,363
North Dakota ND11$1,911+9%$973 – $2,162
New York NY79$1,838+5%$638 – $3,335
West Virginia WV27$1,803+3%$455 – $2,564
Massachusetts MA40$1,798+2%$1,028 – $2,553
Oregon OR42$1,686−4%$438 – $3,656
Illinois IL90$1,634−7%$960 – $3,571
Idaho ID14$1,633−7%$1,453 – $3,542
Iowa IA30$1,511−14%$412 – $2,064
Michigan MI78$1,500−15%$296 – $2,515
Minnesota MN64$1,498−15%$847 – $1,968
Wisconsin WI85$1,471−16%$1,240 – $2,281
Missouri MO59$1,471−16%$997 – $2,075
Kentucky KY25$1,432−18%$485 – $2,365
Alabama AL32$1,404−20%$821 – $2,825
Virginia VA44$1,397−20%$1,010 – $2,363
Hawaii HI14$1,367−22%$648 – $3,709
Connecticut CT17$1,349−23%$823 – $2,165
North Carolina NC64$1,313−25%$728 – $1,850
Oklahoma OK36$1,311−25%$740 – $1,516
Nebraska NE32$1,275−27%$412 – $1,627
Indiana IN60$1,263−28%$962 – $2,022
Nevada NV14$1,260−28%$286 – $2,574
New Hampshire NH13$1,182−33%$197 – $1,433
Kansas KS34$1,112−37%$572 – $2,084
Arizona AZ43$1,063−39%$657 – $4,560
Montana MT17$1,031−41%$728 – $2,106
Maine ME13$966−45%$601 – $3,583
Louisiana LA35$864−51%$560 – $1,931
Arkansas AR19$731−58%$524 – $1,998
Tennessee TN51$674−62%$487 – $998
Mississippi MS40$653−63%$286 – $1,664
South Dakota SD9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Vermont VT9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Rhode Island RI8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Delaware DE7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Maryland MD7not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Wyoming WY6not enough hospitals filed a usable price

Hospitals like yours

The same distribution cut by the kind of hospital. Hospital type and ownership come from CMS; a hospital counts as part of a system when its price file is shared with at least one other hospital under the same brand. The national median is $1,756.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care1,865$1,838$886 – $3,373
Children’s45$2,492$1,228 – $4,345
Critical access356$1,339$524 – $2,405
Ownership
For-profit257$1,857$958 – $3,831
Government322$1,446$613 – $2,494
Non-profit1,687$1,842$847 – $3,347
System affiliation
Part of a system1,903$1,838$880 – $3,386
Independent373$1,385$570 – $2,522

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$3,094
Median cash price$1,756
Cash as a share of list, median hospital60%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 40%. The share is the median of each hospital’s own cash ÷ list ratio, over hospitals that filed both — not the ratio of the two medians above.

The same procedure, inpatient

1,774 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $1,894 and the average of the middle 60% is $1,931; most fall between $871 and $3,363.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 1,774 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$556$1,050$1,894$3,021$4,552

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 8.2× what the cheapest tenth charges ($556 vs $4,552).

Of the 1,890 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 1,774 gave a usable cash price; 39 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 77 a list price only.

How complete is this

2,276 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (58%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 2,435 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted2,276
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here73
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded0
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded4
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded82
Hospitals that filed this code2,435

Sections not shown for this setting

  • Since our last snapshot: there is no earlier snapshot at least 90 days older than this one yet.

We last checked these hospitals’ price files for changes between September 4, 2026 and September 24, 2026; the figures were computed September 25, 2026 from filings loaded through September 24, 2026. The percentiles and averages use only the “counted” row.

Related procedures

Part of the Incision of pleura, thoracentesis, chest drainage family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as Perq Drainage Pleura Insert Cath W/Imaging.

Method

Source
The machine-readable price files every U.S. hospital is required by CMS to publish, parsed per hospital. Nothing is surveyed, sampled or modelled.
What counts
One cash (self-pay) price per hospital for this code and setting. A hospital’s own filing can rule its number out — a placeholder, a “not applicable” note, a list price standing in for cash — and our plausibility checks can flag a price far below what every other hospital files. Both kinds are disclosed above and excluded from the statistics; on the compare tool a flagged price is still shown.
Statistics
Percentiles are discrete: each is a price some hospital filed. The average is the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain mean, the minimum or the maximum. A state needs 10 hospitals and a segment 20 to show a figure; otherwise the row shows its count and no number. Medicare is the national unadjusted OPPS rate where one exists.
Names
Procedure names on these pages are our own plain-language titles, not the AMA’s copyrighted CPT descriptors. The code is the identity.

The full rules — sources, statistics, thresholds, limitations — are on the methodology page.

Download this page’s figures: JSON · CSV. Aggregates only — the per-hospital prices are on the compare tool.

Cite: HospitalRates.com, “Chest drain catheter left in place, with imaging guidance (CPT 32557) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-32557-chest-drain-catheter-left-in-place-with-imaging-guidance