Histochemical stains add-on at Sequoia Hospital

170 Alameda de las Pulgas, Redwood City, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1568646735

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

$93.19

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.

$256.00

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.

$62.01 with BCBS - Anthem vs $18,346.00 with Chinese Community — 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
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|> 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
Kaiser Medicaid|> 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
Kaiser Medicaid|< 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|< 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|< 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|> 21 $62.01 ↓ -33%
Connected Care Commercial|Intel $65.92 ↓ -29%
Health Plan San Mateo Medicaid|> 21 $76.27 ↓ -18%
Health Net Medicaid|< 21 $76.27 ↓ -18%
Health Net Medicaid|> 21 $76.27 ↓ -18%
Health Plan San Mateo Medicaid|< 21 $76.27 ↓ -18%
United Commercial|Options PPO $95.89 ↑ +3%
United Commercial|HMO $95.89 ↑ +3%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $95.89 ↑ +3%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $104.25 ↑ +12%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $110.37 ↑ +18%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $118.05 ↑ +27%
Multiplan Commercial|All Plans $125.71 ↑ +35%
Brown Toland Medicare|All Plans $130.38 ↑ +40%
Aetna Commercial|All Plans $153.30 ↑ +65%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $153.30 ↑ +65%
Cigna Commercial|All Plans $275.89 ↑ +196%
Chinese Community Medicare|All Plans $18,346.00 ↑ +19587%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
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Histochemical stains add-on at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $63.27 $24.58 – $93.10
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $113.58 $7.00 – $227.73
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $112.35 $7.00 – $227.73
St. Joseph's Behavioral Health Center Stockton $43.76 $7.30 – $58.40
St. Joseph's Medical Center Stockton Stockton $90.00 $15.33 – $464.21
Mercy Medical Center Mt. Shasta Mt Shasta $272.62 $6.00 – $25.00
Mercy Medical Center Merced Merced $39.46 $43.80 – $73.00
Northridge Hospital Medical Center Northridge $117.74 $62.01 – $422.00

All California hospitals for this procedure →