Head CT scan (with contrast) at St. Mary Medical Center

1050 Linden Ave, Long Beach, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1194840421

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

$2,169.35

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.

$5,045.00

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.

$184.39 with Noble IPA vs $1,655.00 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
Noble IPA Medicaid|< 21 $184.39 ↓ -92%
Noble IPA Medicaid|> 21 $184.39 ↓ -92%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $204.88 ↓ -91%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $204.88 ↓ -91%
HCLA Medicaid|Preferred IPA > 21 $204.88 ↓ -91%
Inland Empire Health Plan Medicaid|All Plans $204.88 ↓ -91%
Preferred IPA Medicaid|Risk $204.88 ↓ -91%
HCLA Medicaid|Preferred IPA < 21 $204.88 ↓ -91%
Angeles IPA Medicare|All Plans $204.88 ↓ -91%
SMIPA Medicare|All Plans $214.12 ↓ -90%
DHR Medicaid|< 21 $221.00 ↓ -90%
DHR Medicaid|> 21 $221.00 ↓ -90%
HCLA Medicare|Preferred IPA $226.19 ↓ -90%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Health Net Medicare|All Other Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Health Net Medicare|HMO $226.19 ↓ -90%
Cigna Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Central Health Plan Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Other Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
Scan Health Plan Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
LA Care Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
EasyChoice Medicare|All Plans $226.19 ↓ -90%
United Medicare|All Plans $230.72 ↓ -89%
HPN Medicare|Senior $248.81 ↓ -89%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $273.11 ↓ -87%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $273.11 ↓ -87%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|Trauma $282.74 ↓ -87%
LA Care Commercial|All Plans $282.74 ↓ -87%
HCLA Commercial|Preferred IPA $282.74 ↓ -87%
Molina Medicaid|All Plans $286.83 ↓ -87%
Kaiser Medicaid|> 21 $307.32 ↓ -86%
Kaiser Medicaid|< 21 $307.32 ↓ -86%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $330.14 ↓ -85%
SevenCorners Medicare|All Plans $361.90 ↓ -83%
United Commercial|Options PPO $401.74 ↓ -81%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $401.74 ↓ -81%
United Commercial|HMO $401.74 ↓ -81%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $401.74 ↓ -81%
Healthcare Partners Medicare|All Plans $533.00 ↓ -75%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|BlueShield Promise $574.60 ↓ -74%
Healthcare Partners Commercial|All Plans $604.00 ↓ -72%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $618.80 ↓ -71%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $707.20 ↓ -67%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Exchange $716.00 ↓ -67%
LA Care Medicaid|All Plans $844.11 ↓ -61%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $884.00 ↓ -59%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $884.00 ↓ -59%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $884.00 ↓ -59%
Care 1st Medicaid|All Plans $1,024.40 ↓ -53%
Blue Shield CA Medicaid|All Plans $1,024.40 ↓ -53%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $1,068.00 ↓ -51%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $1,582.00 ↓ -27%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $1,582.00 ↓ -27%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $1,655.00 ↓ -24%

Visitor-reported prices

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Head CT scan (with contrast) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,133.94 $226.19 – $3,800.16
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $890.21 $35.60 – $1,536.48
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $3,650.07 $236.37 – $1,312.65
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $2,699.83 $204.88 – $4,685.38
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $4,500.83 $204.88 – $1,466.08
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $2,154.44 $204.88 – $1,768.00
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $2,183.34 $204.88 – $4,708.00
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $2,159.80 $204.88 – $4,649.15

All California hospitals for this procedure →