How Much Does a Knee X-Ray Cost in Louisiana?
X-ray exam of knee 1 or 2
$97Hospital outpatient total2026 Medicare, physician + facilityUnder 2026 Medicare rates, a knee x-ray costs up to about $97 in total at a hospital outpatient department, counting both the physician and the facility (national rates). Outside a hospital, at an independent imaging center, lab or office, Medicare's full rate in Louisiana averages $32, from $31 in Rest of Louisiana to $33 in New Orleans.
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Louisiana Medicare physician rate (2026)
-7.1% vs nationalAverage of 2 localities. Office range $31.11–$32.82.
What the whole procedure costs
The office rate above is what an imaging center, lab or office is paid for the whole test. In a hospital, the facility bills its own fee and the physician bills only the reading. These are 2026 national Medicare amounts.
Medicare may pay the facility separately for this code or package it into another service on the same day, so treat the facility share as an upper bound. For a test like this the physician in a hospital bills only the reading (the professional component); outside a hospital one global fee covers the whole test, shown in the office rate above. Medicare allowed amounts are not what an uninsured patient is charged, and not a quote. Private plans typically allow more.
Your ZIP in Louisiana
Check your ZIP code to see whether New Orleans locality pricing or rest-of-state pricing applies, from the metro area to Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport, and the rural parishes.
What knee x-ray costs at hospitals near you
Everything above is a national average. The hospital you pick in Louisiana moves the bill more than anything else you control.
Rates for your ZIP, 5 named hospitals with CMS ratings, the add-on codes, and the scheduler script.
For example 70030.
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What these numbers are
Every figure on this page is a 2026 Medicare allowed amount: the physician line comes from the Physician Fee Schedule adjusted by geographic practice-cost indices, and the facility totals come from the CMS hospital outpatient (OPPS) and ambulatory surgery center rates. None of them is a hospital chargemaster price, your insurer's contracted rate, or a quote. Anesthesia, pathology, imaging reads and follow-up care are billed under their own codes when they apply, and an inpatient stay is paid a different way again. In Louisiana the office and hospital physician lines for this CPT differ by $24.14.
National vs Louisiana
Where Louisiana ranks for this CPT
CPT 73560 by Louisiana locality
| Locality | Office |
|---|---|
| new orleans | $32.82 |
| rest of louisiana | $31.11 |
PE GPCI ranges from 0.885 to 0.941 in Louisiana. That index is why the same CPT is not one price statewide.
Knee X-Ray and how Louisiana is priced
Louisiana is one of the states CMS splits: the New Orleans area has its own payment locality, and the rest of the state, including Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and Lafayette, shares a second. New Orleans carries somewhat higher geographic adjustments, so identical procedures are approved at higher amounts there than elsewhere in the state. The two-locality structure has been stable for years and mirrors the metro's higher wage and rent levels. Everywhere outside greater New Orleans prices off the same rest-of-state factors.
New Orleans remains the state's medical center of gravity, with academic medicine and the deepest specialist bench, while Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Lafayette, and Lake Charles anchor their own regions. Rural parishes, especially in the north and along the coast, have limited hospital capacity and refer heavily into the cities. Louisiana's high rates of chronic disease keep demand for procedures strong across the state.
This procedure: A knee X-ray takes one or two views of the knee joint, checking for fractures, arthritis, alignment problems, and fluid. It is the recommended first test for most knee pain, especially in patients over 50 where arthritis is likely, and often the only imaging needed. The technologist positions your leg for each quick exposure; standing views may be taken because they show arthritis narrowing better than lying down. The whole visit takes minutes.
What Is Knee X-Ray?
A knee X-ray takes one or two views of the knee joint, checking for fractures, arthritis, alignment problems, and fluid. It is the recommended first test for most knee pain, especially in patients over 50 where arthritis is likely, and often the only imaging needed. The technologist positions your leg for each quick exposure; standing views may be taken because they show arthritis narrowing better than lying down. The whole visit takes minutes.
What Affects the Cost
- –Orthopedic and primary care offices with in-house X-ray typically cost less than hospital radiology departments.
- –Weight-bearing or additional specialized views can be billed as expanded series under related codes.
- –A separate radiologist reading fee may apply where images are sent out for interpretation.
- –A normal X-ray in a younger patient with mechanical symptoms often leads to a knee MRI at many times the price.
- –Imaging both knees for comparison doubles the studies billed.
Questions to Ask Before Booking
- 1.Can the X-ray be done here in the office today, and what will it add to my bill?
- 2.Are standing views needed, and are they billed differently?
- 3.Is an outside radiologist reading the film for a separate fee?
- 4.Based on my age and symptoms, is an MRI likely to be needed, or should the X-ray settle it?
- 5.If you want to compare both knees, is that one charge or two?
Other featured procedures in Louisiana
Knee X-Ray in other states
Knee X-Ray in Louisiana: questions
Under 2026 Medicare rates, a knee x-ray costs up to about $97 in total at a hospital outpatient department, counting both the physician and the facility (national rates). Outside a hospital, at an independent imaging center, lab or office, Medicare's full rate in Louisiana averages $32, from $31 in Rest of Louisiana to $33 in New Orleans. Enter a ZIP for the exact Louisiana locality.
Yes. CMS splits Louisiana into 2 payment localities. For this CPT the office physician fee spans $1.71 from the lowest to highest locality. Check your ZIP code to see whether New Orleans locality pricing or rest-of-state pricing applies, from the metro area to Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport, and the rural parishes.
After the Part B deductible, coinsurance is usually 20% of the allowed amount: about $6 for the office physician line or $2 for the hospital physician line in Louisiana. Medigap may cover that 20%. This is not the hospital facility fee.
It depends on where the test is done. At an independent imaging center, lab or office, $31.97 is Medicare's full rate in Louisiana, covering the test and the reading. In a hospital outpatient department the physician is paid only for the reading (about $7.83) and the hospital is paid separately, which brings the national total to up to about $97. Louisiana ranks #13 of 51 states on the non-hospital rate (7% below the national office rate of $34.40).