Hemoglobin plasma at Mercy Medical Center Merced

333 Mercy Ave., Merced, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1518018191

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

$31.42

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.

Full explanation →

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

$61.00

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.

Full explanation →

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

$4.06 with Blue Shield CA vs $14.00 with Aetna — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $4.06 ↓ -87%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|All Other Plans $5.46 ↓ -83%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
LA Care Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Scan Health Plan Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
United Medicare|All Plans $7.31 ↓ -77%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $8.40 ↓ -73%
United Commercial|HMO $8.77 ↓ -72%
United Commercial|Options PPO $8.77 ↓ -72%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $8.77 ↓ -72%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $8.77 ↓ -72%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $9.10 ↓ -71%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $9.10 ↓ -71%
Inland Empire Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Kaiser Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Kaiser Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Kern Health System Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Kern Health System Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Central California Alliance for Health Medicaid|All Plans $9.32 ↓ -70%
Health Plan of San Joaquin Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Health Plan of San Joaquin Medicaid|> 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
Inland Empire Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $9.32 ↓ -70%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Exchange $9.52 ↓ -70%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $9.66 ↓ -69%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|< 21 $10.89 ↓ -65%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|> 21 $10.89 ↓ -65%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $11.20 ↓ -64%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $12.46 ↓ -60%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $13.16 ↓ -58%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $14.00 ↓ -55%
Health Net Medicaid|All Plans $14.00 ↓ -55%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $14.00 ↓ -55%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $14.00 ↓ -55%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $14.00 ↓ -55%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Hemoglobin plasma at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $8.76 $1.46 – $13.58
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $37.77 $7.16 – $59.63
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $6.00 $7.00 – $18.83
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $25.98 $7.31 – $38.22
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $5.49 $3.78 – $22.14
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $21.89 $7.00 – $21.00
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $21.66 $7.00 – $21.00
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $37.77 $7.31 – $75.36

All California hospitals for this procedure →