Blood smear interpretation at Petaluma Valley Hospital
400 N Mcdowell Blvd, Petaluma, CA · Providence · · NPI 1235162645
$17.34
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.
$34.00
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.
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The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.
$50.52 with Unitedhealthcare vs $184.54 with Blue Cross — 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unitedhealthcare | All Commercial Plans | $50.52 | ↑ +191% |
| Unitedhealthcare | Select/Navigate Hmo | $50.52 | ↑ +191% |
| Aetna | All Commercial Plans | $116.13 | ↑ +570% |
| Blue Cross | Epo Exchange | $128.38 | ↑ +640% |
| Blue Cross | Nonmcs All Commercial Plans | $153.78 | ↑ +787% |
| Blue Cross | Mcs All Commercial Plans | $184.54 | ↑ +964% |
Visitor-reported prices
Comments
Blood smear interpretation at other California hospitals
| Hospital | City | Cash price | Negotiated range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Queen of The Valley Medical Center | Napa | $16.83 | $50.52 – $162.24 |
| Providence St Joseph Hospital Eureka | Eureka | $100.47 | $50.52 – $183.98 |
| Healdsburg Hospital | Healdsburg | $35.70 | $66.68 – $73.39 |
| Redwood Memorial Hospital | Fortuna | $122.40 | $184.41 – $184.41 |
| Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital | Santa Rosa | $167.28 | $50.52 – $138.03 |
| Providence Mission Hospital - Mission Viejo | Mission Viejo | $39.36 | $50.52 – $206.01 |
| Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center | Burbank | $23.80 | $37.14 – $99.02 |
| St Jude Medical Center | Fullerton | $17.28 | $50.52 – $194.50 |