About the data
The basics of hospital price transparency and how to read the numbers on this site.
The hospital's list price (chargemaster) before any discount. Few patients actually pay it.
The price a hospital offers to patients paying directly without insurance.
The rate a specific insurance plan has agreed to pay the hospital for a service.
Hospital price transparency
Since January 2021, U.S. federal rules require hospitals to publish a machine-readable file listing their standard charges for items and services, plus a consumer-friendly list of shoppable services. These files are usually large CSV or JSON documents with thousands of rows.
CPT and HCPCS codes
CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) codes are five-digit codes maintained by the American Medical Association that describe medical procedures, such as 72148 for an MRI of the lumbar spine without contrast. HCPCS Level II codes (e.g. G0121) cover services, supplies and items not in CPT, often used by Medicare.
Published prices are not your bill
A published price is what a hospital says it charges or has agreed to accept for a defined service. Your actual bill may differ because of physician fees billed separately, anesthesia, facility fees, additional imaging or tests, complications, your deductible, coinsurance and plan rules.
Always confirm costs with the hospital and your insurer before receiving care. ClearCost Boston is informational and does not provide billing estimates, medical advice or financial guarantees.
About ClearCost Boston
ClearCost Boston shows the published pricing files uploaded for participating hospitals. Each hospital’s directory page identifies its source file, published date, and the date ClearCost retrieved it.