Abdominal paracentesis w/image guidance at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital

420 34th St., Bakersfield, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1467538520

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Feb 28, 2026 · Ingested Sep 10, 2026

$672.72

Cash price

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Discounted cash price

What a hospital charges a self-pay patient who pays directly, without going through insurance — usually well below the gross charge.

Example: A CT scan has a $3,200 gross charge but an $850 discounted cash price. Ask for it by name when scheduling — hospitals don't always advertise it up front.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$1,833.00

Gross charge

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Gross charge (chargemaster price)

The hospital's full, undiscounted list price — pulled from its internal "chargemaster" price list. Almost no one actually pays this.

Example: A chest X-ray has a gross charge of $1,450. The same hospital's discounted cash price for the same X-ray is $180 — the gross charge mostly anchors negotiations, not what patients pay.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$103.10 with Molina vs $7,821.00 with BCBS - Anthem — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
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Negotiated rate

The price a specific insurance plan agreed to pay the hospital for a service — it varies by insurer, and even by plan within the same insurer.

Example: The same knee MRI has a negotiated rate of $904 with one insurer's PPO plan and $1,509 with another's — identical hospital, identical scan.

Full explanation →

Payer
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Payer

The insurance company footing the bill — Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, and so on.

Example: "Blue Cross Blue Shield" is the payer. Its negotiated rate for an MRI might be $904, while a different payer's negotiated rate for the same scan is $1,509.

Full explanation →
Plan
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Plan

The specific product an insurer sells — e.g. "Blue Cross PPO 500" — which sets your deductible, coinsurance and negotiated rates.

Example: Two people both insured by Aetna can owe very different amounts for the same MRI: $50 with an HMO plan's flat copay, or the full $1,200 toward a high-deductible PPO plan's unmet deductible.

Full explanation →
Negotiated rate vs. cash
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
LA Care Medicaid|< 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Kaiser Medicaid|< 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Kaiser Medicaid|> 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Care 1st Medicaid|< 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Care 1st Medicaid|> 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
LA Care Medicaid|> 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $103.10 ↓ -85%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $118.43 ↓ -82%
Kern Health System Medicaid|< 21 $158.98 ↓ -76%
Kern Health System Medicaid|> 21 $158.98 ↓ -76%
Health Net Medicaid|GemCare $272.69 ↓ -59%
Health Net Medicaid|Non-GemCare $368.87 ↓ -45%
Western Growers Commercial|All Plans $1,008.15 ↑ +50%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Other Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
United Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
Scan Health Plan Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
BrightHealth Commercial|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
HPN Medicare|All Plans $1,191.26 ↑ +77%
CHN Sun View Commercial|All Plans $1,191.45 ↑ +77%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $1,283.10 ↑ +91%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|Burn $1,310.39 ↑ +95%
HPN Commercial|All Plans $1,310.39 ↑ +95%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $1,393.08 ↑ +107%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $1,448.07 ↑ +115%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|PremerTiered $1,484.73 ↑ +121%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $1,620.11 ↑ +141%
United Commercial|HMO $1,814.67 ↑ +170%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $1,833.00 ↑ +172%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $1,833.00 ↑ +172%
United Commercial|Options PPO $1,833.00 ↑ +172%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $2,907.00 ↑ +332%
Health Net Commercial|Exchange $4,511.00 ↑ +571%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Exchange $4,982.00 ↑ +641%
Health Net Commercial|Care Product $5,261.00 ↑ +682%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $5,281.00 ↑ +685%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $5,576.00 ↑ +729%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $5,793.00 ↑ +761%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|All Other Plans $6,060.00 ↑ +801%
Health Net Commercial|All Other Plans $6,300.00 ↑ +836%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $7,821.00 ↑ +1063%

Visitor-reported prices

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Abdominal paracentesis w/image guidance at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $680.05 $103.10 – $1,466.40
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $635.54 $126.81 – $2,072.04
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $840.39 $148.04 – $1,167.88
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $1,660.05 $1,222.26 – $4,657.00
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $1,746.67 $103.10 – $2,742.04
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $1,631.70 $75.29 – $285.18
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $1,599.76 $103.10 – $2,518.60
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $1,503.48 $1,287.79 – $7,455.00

All California hospitals for this procedure →