Breast Biopsy (ultrasound-guided, percutaneous) at Petaluma Valley Hospital

400 N Mcdowell Blvd, Petaluma, CA · Providence · · NPI 1235162645

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Apr 1, 2026 · Ingested Sep 11, 2026

$3,603.15

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.

$7,065.00

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.

$2,225.71 with Healthnet vs $11,153.00 with Aetna — 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
Healthnet Medicare Managed Care Plan $2,225.71 ↓ -38%
Aetna Medicare Managed Care Plan $2,271.13 ↓ -37%
Blue Shield Epn Exchange $2,570.00 ↓ -29%
Blue Shield Hmo/Pos/Ppo $3,135.00 ↓ -13%
Unitedhealthcare Select/Navigate Hmo $4,657.00 ↑ +29%
Unitedhealthcare All Commercial Plans $5,208.00 ↑ +45%
Healthnet Hmo/Pos/Ppo $9,858.00 ↑ +174%
Aetna All Commercial Plans $11,153.00 ↑ +210%

Visitor-reported prices

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Breast Biopsy (ultrasound-guided, percutaneous) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,180.81 $928.80 – $3,883.62
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $2,264.44 $1,012.97 – $4,207.86
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $4,430.66 $613.92 – $9,431.52
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $2,835.83 $97.53 – $377.00
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $4,057.99 $613.92 – $4,462.92
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $1,181.27 $613.92 – $2,251.20
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $1,168.53 $613.92 – $2,223.06
Queen of The Valley Medical Center Napa $5,258.10 $2,345.04 – $9,858.00

All California hospitals for this procedure →