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Procedure price report · Magnetic resonance imaging

MRI of the mid-back (thoracic spine) with contrast

CPT 72147the billing code this page is about

Magnetic resonance imaging of the thoracic (middle) portion of the spine, performed after contrast dye is injected.

Hospitals typically charge $2,122 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 2,883 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $2,174. Most fall between $991 and $3,721 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
2,883
States
50
Filings dated
Aug 2022 – 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 2,883 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
$637$1,187$2,122$3,324$5,563

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 8.7× what the cheapest tenth charges ($637 vs $5,563).

How the prices are spread

$457 – $605: 103 hospitals$457$605 – $802: 183 hospitals$802 – $1,062: 196 hospitals$802$1,062 – $1,408: 262 hospitals$1,408 – $1,865: 387 hospitals$1,408$1,865 – $2,471: 401 hospitals$2,471 – $3,273: 478 hospitals$2,471$3,273 – $4,337: 295 hospitals$4,337 – $5,746: 156 hospitals$4,337$5,746 – $7,613: 134 hospitals$5,746median $2,122price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (2,595 of 2,883 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$457$605103
$605$802183
$802$1,062196
$1,062$1,408262
$1,408$1,865387
$1,865$2,471401
$2,471$3,273478
$3,273$4,337295
$4,337$5,746156
$5,746$7,613134

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$356
Median cash price$2,122
Cash as a multiple of Medicare6.0×

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 $2,122.

Alaska: median $3,102 across 11 hospitalsAK$3,102Maine: median $1,444 across 24 hospitalsME$1,444Vermont: median $3,362 across 11 hospitalsVT$3,362New Hampshire: median $2,294 across 17 hospitalsNH$2,294Washington: median $2,004 across 63 hospitalsWA$2,004Idaho: median $1,831 across 20 hospitalsID$1,831Montana: median $2,183 across 15 hospitalsMT$2,183North Dakota: median $2,257 across 24 hospitalsND$2,257Minnesota: median $1,448 across 73 hospitalsMN$1,448Illinois: median $3,347 across 128 hospitalsIL$3,347Wisconsin: median $2,210 across 97 hospitalsWI$2,210Michigan: median $1,817 across 73 hospitalsMI$1,817New York: median $1,057 across 104 hospitalsNY$1,057Massachusetts: median $2,838 across 46 hospitalsMA$2,838Oregon: median $2,104 across 43 hospitalsOR$2,104Nevada: median $1,940 across 17 hospitalsNV$1,940Wyoming: median $1,534 across 12 hospitalsWY$1,534South Dakota: median $3,514 across 17 hospitalsSD$3,514Iowa: median $2,309 across 62 hospitalsIA$2,309Indiana: median $970 across 85 hospitalsIN$970Ohio: median $1,711 across 120 hospitalsOH$1,711Pennsylvania: median $2,594 across 111 hospitalsPA$2,594New Jersey: median $618 across 57 hospitalsNJ$618Connecticut: median $1,567 across 13 hospitalsCT$1,567Rhode Island: 8 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureRICalifornia: median $3,401 across 200 hospitalsCA$3,401Utah: median $3,002 across 40 hospitalsUT$3,002Colorado: median $2,350 across 57 hospitalsCO$2,350Nebraska: median $3,360 across 69 hospitalsNE$3,360Missouri: median $1,908 across 69 hospitalsMO$1,908Kentucky: median $1,711 across 53 hospitalsKY$1,711West Virginia: median $1,943 across 30 hospitalsWV$1,943Virginia: median $2,474 across 54 hospitalsVA$2,474Maryland: median $741 across 36 hospitalsMD$741Delaware: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureDEArizona: median $1,452 across 47 hospitalsAZ$1,452New Mexico: median $2,398 across 18 hospitalsNM$2,398Kansas: median $1,608 across 72 hospitalsKS$1,608Arkansas: median $1,167 across 20 hospitalsAR$1,167Tennessee: median $992 across 72 hospitalsTN$992North Carolina: median $2,413 across 73 hospitalsNC$2,413South Carolina: median $2,660 across 50 hospitalsSC$2,660Oklahoma: median $1,295 across 53 hospitalsOK$1,295Louisiana: median $1,017 across 49 hospitalsLA$1,017Mississippi: median $1,365 across 46 hospitalsMS$1,365Alabama: median $1,832 across 35 hospitalsAL$1,832Georgia: median $1,657 across 91 hospitalsGA$1,657Hawaii: 9 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureHITexas: median $2,263 across 222 hospitalsTX$2,263Florida: median $4,049 across 161 hospitalsFL$4,049
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $2,122. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
Florida FL161$4,049+91%$1,678 – $8,009
South Dakota SD17$3,514+66%$3,240 – $4,616
California CA200$3,401+60%$1,919 – $6,508
Vermont VT11$3,362+58%$2,212 – $3,958
Nebraska NE69$3,360+58%$1,971 – $4,017
Illinois IL128$3,347+58%$1,454 – $4,520
Alaska AK11$3,102+46%$2,181 – $3,842
Utah UT40$3,002+41%$2,098 – $3,532
Massachusetts MA46$2,838+34%$1,379 – $3,692
South Carolina SC50$2,660+25%$1,356 – $2,743
Pennsylvania PA111$2,594+22%$576 – $4,936
Virginia VA54$2,474+17%$888 – $4,363
North Carolina NC73$2,413+14%$1,753 – $3,255
New Mexico NM18$2,398+13%$1,397 – $3,801
Colorado CO57$2,350+11%$1,181 – $2,805
Iowa IA62$2,309+9%$1,612 – $3,396
New Hampshire NH17$2,294+8%$1,515 – $5,704
Texas TX222$2,263+7%$1,412 – $5,474
North Dakota ND24$2,257+6%$1,975 – $3,183
Wisconsin WI97$2,210+4%$963 – $2,901
Montana MT15$2,183+3%$1,227 – $2,717
Oregon OR43$2,104−1%$1,387 – $2,916
Washington WA63$2,004−6%$1,219 – $2,841
West Virginia WV30$1,943−8%$1,352 – $3,242
Nevada NV17$1,940−9%$956 – $3,247
Missouri MO69$1,908−10%$1,201 – $3,157
Alabama AL35$1,832−14%$963 – $3,926
Idaho ID20$1,831−14%$1,398 – $2,325
Michigan MI73$1,817−14%$934 – $3,601
Ohio OH120$1,711−19%$1,355 – $3,069
Kentucky KY53$1,711−19%$1,190 – $3,258
Georgia GA91$1,657−22%$980 – $3,013
Kansas KS72$1,608−24%$800 – $2,708
Connecticut CT13$1,567−26%$1,078 – $2,318
Wyoming WY12$1,534−28%$995 – $3,500
Arizona AZ47$1,452−32%$433 – $6,449
Minnesota MN73$1,448−32%$584 – $2,855
Maine ME24$1,444−32%$615 – $2,482
Mississippi MS46$1,365−36%$977 – $1,551
Oklahoma OK53$1,295−39%$728 – $2,081
Arkansas AR20$1,167−45%$584 – $2,339
New York NY104$1,057−50%$495 – $4,019
Louisiana LA49$1,017−52%$651 – $1,972
Tennessee TN72$992−53%$637 – $2,105
Indiana IN85$970−54%$619 – $2,549
Maryland MD36$741−65%$503 – $1,130
New Jersey NJ57$618−71%$421 – $1,580
Hawaii HI9not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Rhode Island RI8not enough hospitals filed a usable price
Delaware DE6not 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 $2,122.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care2,146$2,040$928 – $3,892
Children’s63$3,342$2,123 – $6,822
Critical access665$2,204$1,169 – $3,360
Ownership
For-profit419$2,800$1,121 – $8,365
Government481$1,953$980 – $3,170
Non-profit1,974$2,098$972 – $3,514
System affiliation
Part of a system2,386$2,155$1,041 – $3,851
Independent497$1,958$878 – $3,313

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$3,713
Median cash price$2,122
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

2,005 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $2,190 and the average of the middle 60% is $2,224; most fall between $1,083 and $3,665.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 2,005 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
$659$1,295$2,190$3,347$4,995

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 7.6× what the cheapest tenth charges ($659 vs $4,995).

Of the 2,209 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 2,005 gave a usable cash price; 108 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 96 a list price only.

How complete is this

2,883 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (73%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 3,186 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted2,883
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here194
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded0
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded2
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded107
Hospitals that filed this code3,186

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 Magnetic resonance imaging family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as MRI Spinal Canal Thoracic W/Contrast Matrl|PROFESSIONAL COMPONENT.

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, “MRI of the mid-back (thoracic spine) with contrast (CPT 72147) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-72147-mri-of-the-mid-back-thoracic-spine-with-contrast