ER Visit (level 5, high severity) at Mercy General Hospital

4001 J St., Sacramento, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1487694857

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

$8,113.75

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.

$37,219.00

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.

$155.03 with United vs $17,741.00 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
United Medicaid|< 21 $155.03 ↓ -98%
United Medicaid|> 21 $155.03 ↓ -98%
Hill Physicians Medicaid|All Plans $170.53 ↓ -98%
Hill Physicians Commercial|All Plans $171.11 ↓ -98%
Hill Physicians Medicare|All Plans $181.79 ↓ -98%
Molina Medicaid|All Plans $203.19 ↓ -97%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $294.56 ↓ -96%
Health Net Medicaid|All Plans $359.67 ↓ -96%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|All Plans $359.67 ↓ -96%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|All Plans $666.63 ↓ -92%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Other Plans $759.75 ↓ -91%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $805.67 ↓ -90%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $805.67 ↓ -90%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $805.67 ↓ -90%
Molina Medicare|All Plans $805.67 ↓ -90%
United Medicare|All Plans $805.67 ↓ -90%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|PPO $805.67 ↓ -90%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|HMO $805.67 ↓ -90%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|Imperial $829.84 ↓ -90%
BrightHealth Commercial|All Plans $886.24 ↓ -89%
Prison Healthcare Medicaid|All Plans $1,208.51 ↓ -85%
Western Health Advantage Commercial|All Plans $2,164.05 ↓ -73%
Kaiser Medicaid|All Plans $2,535.03 ↓ -69%
Cigna Commercial|LocalPlus $4,080.78 ↓ -50%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|ACO Trio CalPers $4,142.61 ↓ -49%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $4,451.76 ↓ -45%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $4,637.25 ↓ -43%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $4,699.08 ↓ -42%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $4,884.57 ↓ -40%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $4,946.40 ↓ -39%
Sutter Health Commercial|All Plans $4,946.40 ↓ -39%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $5,317.38 ↓ -34%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $5,317.38 ↓ -34%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $5,317.38 ↓ -34%
United Commercial|HMO $5,422.00 ↓ -33%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $5,441.04 ↓ -33%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|All Other Plans $5,564.70 ↓ -31%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|HMO $5,564.70 ↓ -31%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|CalPers $5,626.53 ↓ -31%
Health Net Commercial|EPPO $8,674.00 ↑ +7%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Connection EPO $9,788.00 ↑ +21%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $12,155.00 ↑ +50%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $12,235.00 ↑ +51%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $14,693.00 ↑ +81%
Health Net Commercial|FFS $15,971.00 ↑ +97%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $17,741.00 ↑ +119%

Visitor-reported prices

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ER Visit (level 5, high severity) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Methodist Hospital of Sacramento Sacramento $10,719.08 $155.03 – $5,131.89
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,060.79 $226.60 – $3,279.18
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $3,441.94 $122.62 – $2,525.88
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $4,458.42 $802.54 – $818.92
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $1,593.02 $155.03 – $3,316.32
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $1,886.78 $138.93 – $526.26
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $1,459.03 $155.03 – $3,392.76
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $2,521.69 $155.03 – $5,573.54

All California hospitals for this procedure →