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First Fluid Tap Through An Infant's Soft Spot

Illinois rates for HCPCS 61000

A needle is passed through the soft spot or a suture line on a baby's skull to draw off fluid or blood that has collected between the brain and its covering. This is the first such tap, relieving pressure on the developing brain and providing a sample for testing. It is done at the bedside and takes only a few minutes.

Rates data updated July 2026.

How much does First Fluid Tap Through An Infant's Soft Spot cost?

$229

Typical negotiated rate. In Illinois, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $229 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $145 from a physician practice, and about $1,380 from a hospital or other facility. The two figures are alternatives, not parts of one bill.

These are rates insurers have negotiated with providers, not the amount a patient is billed. What you owe depends on your plan's deductible and coinsurance. Based on rates published by 6 insurance carriers under federal price transparency rules.

Where it's billed changes the price

Billed byTypicalRange
Physician practiceA doctor's office, clinic or independent provider$145$112 to $229
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$1,380$813 to $3,020

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $1,380 · 10th to 90th $224 to $5,370Professionalmedian $145 · 10th to 90th $100 to $398
$100$200$500$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $1,380professional $145

Distribution of negotiated rates across all payers (price axis is log-scale). Each curve is scaled to its own total: facility and professional rates are different services, shown together to compare where they cluster. Need provider-level prices or 24+ months of history? Contact us.

Rates by insurance carrier

Insurance Carrier
Aetna
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$223.87
Median
$1,380.38
Typical High
$5,623.41
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$100.00
Median
$123.03
Typical High
$316.23
BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$1,023.29
Typical High
$2,398.83
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$158.49
Median
$158.49
Typical High
$199.53
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$114.82
Median
$177.83
Typical High
$281.84
Hally Health
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$128.82
Median
$199.53
Typical High
$575.44
Hally Health
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$100.00
Median
$100.00
Typical High
$100.00
Hally Health
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$125.89
Median
$151.36
Typical High
$173.78
Molina
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$32.36
Median
$32.36
Typical High
$33.11
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$602.56
Median
$1,380.38
Typical High
$3,548.13
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$112.20
Median
$154.88
Typical High
$263.03

Where Illinois sits

The same service costs 29.5 times more in California than in Delaware. Every bar is a state, most expensive first. Touch or drag across it to read any state, then open that state for its carriers and full range.

Illinois· 16th of 51

$229

CA $3,162DE $107

Median negotiated rate in each state, from every insurer that publishes one. States where no insurer publishes a rate for this service are not shown.