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First Fluid Tap Through An Infant's Soft Spot

Massachusetts 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?

$191

Typical negotiated rate. In Massachusetts, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $191 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $148 from a physician practice, and about $2,089 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 7 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$148$117 to $263
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$2,089$1,288 to $3,236

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $2,089 · 10th to 90th $135 to $4,169Professionalmedian $148 · 10th to 90th $107 to $372
$100$200$500$1K$2K$5Kfacility $2,089professional $148

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
$1,000.00
Median
$2,238.72
Typical High
$3,801.89
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$91.20
Median
$114.82
Typical High
$371.54
AllWays Health Partners
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$56.23
Median
$1,318.26
Typical High
$3,801.89
AllWays Health Partners
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$95.50
Median
$165.96
Typical High
$794.33
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$151.36
Median
$218.78
Typical High
$416.87
Fallon Health
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$120.23
Median
$158.49
Typical High
$3,630.78
Fallon Health
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$120.23
Median
$151.36
Typical High
$208.93
Harvard Pilgrim
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$1,288.25
Median
$2,511.89
Typical High
$7,079.46
Harvard Pilgrim
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$114.82
Median
$204.17
Typical High
$346.74
Mass General Brigham
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$56.23
Median
$1,318.26
Typical High
$3,801.89
Mass General Brigham
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$95.50
Median
$165.96
Typical High
$794.33
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$954.99
Median
$2,089.30
Typical High
$5,623.41
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$125.89
Median
$208.93
Typical High
$524.81

Where Massachusetts 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.

Massachusetts· 28th of 51

$191

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.