Aluminum - quest at Methodist Hospital of Sacramento

7500 Hospital Dr., Sacramento, CA · CommonSpirit Health · · NPI 1467560599

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

$5.68

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.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$19.72

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.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$6.91 with Western Health Advantage vs $75.23 with Cigna — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
?

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
Western Health Advantage Commercial|All Plans $6.91 ↑ +22%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|ACO Trio $7.30 ↑ +29%
Kaiser Medicaid|All Plans $8.09 ↑ +42%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|ACO Trio CalPers $9.27 ↑ +63%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|Exchange $9.67 ↑ +70%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|HMO $14.01 ↑ +147%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|CalPers $14.40 ↑ +154%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|BRMS $14.79 ↑ +160%
First Health Commercial|All Plans $14.79 ↑ +160%
Kaiser Commercial|All Plans $15.58 ↑ +174%
Sutter Health Commercial|All Plans $15.78 ↑ +178%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|Connection EPO $15.78 ↑ +178%
Healthsmart Commercial|All Plans $15.98 ↑ +181%
MultiPlan Commercial|All Plans $16.37 ↑ +188%
Blue Shield CA Commercial|All Other Plans $16.77 ↑ +195%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|All Other Plans $18.60 ↑ +227%
Kaiser Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Connected Care Commercial|Intel $19.72 ↑ +247%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|All Other Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
BCBS - Anthem Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Humana Commercial|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Blue Shield CA Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
BCBS - Anthem Commercial|MCS $19.72 ↑ +247%
Humana Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Aetna Commercial|All Other Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Aetna Commercial|PPO $19.72 ↑ +247%
Aetna Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Aetna Commercial|HMO $19.72 ↑ +247%
Molina Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Commercial|All Other Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Commercial|HMO $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Commercial|Options PPO $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Commercial|Non-Options PPO $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Medicaid|< 21 $19.72 ↑ +247%
United Medicaid|> 21 $19.72 ↑ +247%
Health Net Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Health Net Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Hill Physicians Commercial|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Hill Physicians Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Hill Physicians Medicare|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
Partnership Health Plan Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
California Health & Wellness Medicaid|All Plans $19.72 ↑ +247%
BCBS - Anthem Medicare|Imperial $20.32 ↑ +258%
Cigna Commercial|LocalPlus $56.42 ↑ +893%
Cigna Commercial|All Other Plans $75.23 ↑ +1224%

Visitor-reported prices

visitor-reported
Report what you paid sign in to post

Comments

Add a comment sign in to post

Aluminum - quest at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
Mercy General Hospital Sacramento $4.30 $6.91 – $56.42
Banner Lassen Medical Center Susanville $11.89 $5.10 – $32.54
Petaluma Valley Hospital Petaluma $6.12 $24.97 – $208.01
Arroyo Grande Hospital Santa Maria $5.17 $6.03 – $65.64
Mark Twain Medical Center San Andreas $8.04 $6.53 – $12.06
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $4.73 $3.26 – $77.17
Mercy Hospitals – Bakersfield Bakersfield $4.48 $6.03 – $73.21
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Bakersfield $4.43 $6.03 – $73.21

All California hospitals for this procedure →