Mayo carnitine total and free quantitative each specimen 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

$28.80

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.

$55.92

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.

$7.88 with Blue Shield CA vs $27.17 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
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $7.88 ↓ -73%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|All Other Plans $10.60 ↓ -63%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $16.31 ↓ -43%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
United Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
LA Care Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Scan Health Plan Medicare|All Plans $16.87 ↓ -41%
Cigna Commercial|PPO $17.67 ↓ -39%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $17.67 ↓ -39%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Exchange $18.48 ↓ -36%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $18.75 ↓ -35%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $20.24 ↓ -30%
United Commercial|Options PPO $20.24 ↓ -30%
United Commercial|HMO $20.24 ↓ -30%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $20.24 ↓ -30%
Inland Empire Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Molina Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Molina Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Kaiser Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Kaiser Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Kern Health System Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Kern Health System Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Central California Alliance for Health Medicaid|All Plans $21.50 ↓ -25%
Health Plan of San Joaquin Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Health Plan of San Joaquin Medicaid|> 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
Inland Empire Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $21.50 ↓ -25%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $21.74 ↓ -25%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $24.19 ↓ -16%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $25.54 ↓ -11%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|> 21 $26.08 ↓ -9%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|< 21 $26.08 ↓ -9%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $27.17 ↓ -6%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $27.17 ↓ -6%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $27.17 ↓ -6%
Health Net Medicaid|All Plans $27.17 ↓ -6%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $27.17 ↓ -6%

Visitor-reported prices

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Mayo carnitine total and free quantitative each specimen plasma at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $11.91 $4.28 – $44.78
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $40.69 $3.37 – $27.16
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $85.17 $16.53 – $137.06
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $23.94 $13.59 – $43.49
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $18.10 $14.71 – $26.63
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $21.93 $7.34 – $51.12
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $20.75 $13.59 – $48.50
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $20.53 $13.59 – $48.50

All California hospitals for this procedure →