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First Fluid Tap Through An Infant's Soft Spot

Missouri 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?

$1,479

Typical negotiated rate. In Missouri, July 2026.

Insurers have agreed to pay about $1,479 for this service. The price depends on where it is billed: about $129 from a physician practice, and about $3,162 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$129$112 to $186
FacilityA hospital or hospital-owned outpatient department$3,162$1,778 to $5,129

How much rates vary

Facilitymedian $3,162 · 10th to 90th $813 to $7,413Professionalmedian $129 · 10th to 90th $95 to $851
$100$200$500$1K$2K$5K$10Kfacility $3,162professional $129

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
$812.83
Median
$2,511.89
Typical High
$7,413.10
Aetna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$95.50
Median
$117.49
Typical High
$2,511.89
Anthem BCBS
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$2,238.72
Median
$4,570.88
Typical High
$8,317.64
Anthem BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$109.65
Median
$134.90
Typical High
$208.93
BCBS
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$102.33
Median
$117.49
Typical High
$173.78
Cigna
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$120.23
Median
$169.82
Typical High
$363.08
Medica
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$54.95
Median
$218.78
Typical High
$2,089.30
Medica
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$117.49
Median
$177.83
Typical High
$794.33
United
Setting
Facility
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$562.34
Median
$1,047.13
Typical High
$2,238.72
United
Setting
Professional
Modifier
Global
Typical Low
$114.82
Median
$162.18
Typical High
$269.15

Where Missouri 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.

Missouri· 3rd of 51

$1,479

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.