Biopsy muscle percutaneous needle at Redwood Memorial Hospital

3300 Renner Dr, Fortuna, CA · Providence · · NPI 1043292303

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Apr 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 11, 2026

$4,905.18

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.

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

$9,618.00

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.

$5,981.00 with Blue Shield vs $20,799.00 with Aetna — 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
Blue Shield Hmo/Pos/Ppo $5,981.00 ↑ +22%
Blue Cross Anthem Non-Mcs (Ind1, Ncx3) All Commercial Plans $8,222.00 ↑ +68%
Healthnet Hmo/Pos/Ppo $9,858.00 ↑ +101%
Blue Cross Anthem Mcs (Indx) All Commercial Plans $9,866.00 ↑ +101%
Aetna Hmo/Ppo $20,799.00 ↑ +324%

Visitor-reported prices

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Biopsy muscle percutaneous needle at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $833.52 $93.01 – $3,763.88
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $1,014.25 $108.73 – $1,884.71
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $3,014.10 $1,921.00 – $4,657.00
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $2,163.12 $75.62 – $2,822.40
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $1,374.63 $75.62 – $884.94
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $1,901.60 $75.62 – $2,723.42
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $1,719.22 $75.62 – $3,707.20
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $1,700.68 $75.62 – $3,660.86

All California hospitals for this procedure →