Brain cavity shunt w/scope at Mercy Medical Center Merced
333 Mercy Ave., Merced, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1518018191
not published by hospital
Cash price 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.
not published by hospital
Gross charge 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.
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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.
$1,367.11 with Inland Empire Health Plan vs $23,063.00 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 →
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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 ?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 ?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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inland Empire Health Plan | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Molina | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Molina | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Kaiser | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Kaiser | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Partnership Health Plan | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Partnership Health Plan | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Kern Health System | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Kern Health System | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| California Health & Wellness | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| California Health & Wellness | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Health Plan of San Joaquin | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Health Plan of San Joaquin | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| Inland Empire Health Plan | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,367.11 | — |
| BCBS - Anthem | Medicaid|< 21 | $1,965.22 | — |
| BCBS - Anthem | Medicaid|> 21 | $1,965.22 | — |
| Central California Alliance for Health | Medicaid|All Plans | $2,155.04 | — |
| Health Net | Medicaid|All Plans | $4,654.89 | — |
| BCBS - Anthem | Commercial|Exchange | $11,094.00 | — |
| BCBS - Anthem | Commercial|All Other Plans | $14,597.00 | — |
| Aetna | Commercial|HMO | $15,877.00 | — |
| Aetna | Commercial|All Other Plans | $15,877.00 | — |
| Aetna | Commercial|PPO | $15,877.00 | — |
| BCBS - Anthem | Commercial|MCS | $23,063.00 | — |
| Cigna | Commercial|All Other Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| Kaiser | Commercial|All Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| Healthsmart | Commercial|All Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| MultiPlan | Commercial|All Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| First Health | Commercial|All Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| United | Commercial|All Other Plans | not published by hospital | — |
| United | Commercial|HMO | not published by hospital | — |
| United | Commercial|Options PPO | not published by hospital | — |
| United | Commercial|Non-Options PPO | not published by hospital | — |
| Cigna | Commercial|PPO | not published by hospital | — |
Visitor-reported prices
Comments
Brain cavity shunt w/scope at other California hospitals
| Hospital | City | Cash price | Negotiated range |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. John's Camarillo Hospital | Camarillo | not published | $1,681.55 – $2,939.29 |
| Petaluma Valley Hospital | Petaluma | not published | $1,921.00 – $6,619.00 |
| Arroyo Grande Hospital | Santa Maria | not published | $1,367.11 – $2,155.04 |
| Mark Twain Medical Center | San Andreas | not published | $1,367.11 – $1,367.11 |
| French Hospital | San Luis Obispo | not published | $1,367.11 – $2,155.04 |
| Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield | Bakersfield | not published | $1,367.11 – $5,193.65 |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital | Bakersfield | not published | $1,367.11 – $5,193.65 |
| Queen of The Valley Medical Center | Napa | not published | $5,592.00 – $10,593.00 |